


Sudden Desire

by ssa_americana



Category: Criminal Minds (US TV)
Genre: Age Difference, Alternate Universe - Criminal Minds Setting, Angst, Cheating, Explicit Sexual Content, F/M, Fluff and Smut, Original Character(s), Sad Ending, Smut
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-19
Updated: 2020-12-29
Packaged: 2021-03-08 21:41:37
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 30
Words: 74,746
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27103651
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ssa_americana/pseuds/ssa_americana
Summary: She's always been into older men, but she never meant to fall for her mom's new boyfriend.COMPLETED on November 11th, 2020.*sporadically adding 'one shots' as new chapters*.
Relationships: Aaron Hotchner/Original Female Character(s)
Comments: 13
Kudos: 37





	1. Mission accomplished

**Author's Note:**

> Hiiii! you can find this story on Wattpad under the same name (Sudden Desire) at SSA_AMERICANA and on tumblr at dudeitiskarev.

The many late nights of Aaron's and David's at the BAU always ended with a reflection, some more useful than others, and this time wasn't the exception. 

They haven't had any cases brought to them for the past two days and Aaron still managed to stay at his office until he lost track of time, and with the company of his old friend, time went by even faster.

They were relaxing. Or leisuring, as Rossi liked to call it, having some drinks in Hotchner's office talking about life. And the topic of Aaron not having someone to go home to came up.

"Why don't you get this app that kids use these days to meet people, what is it called?" David said while holding his drink in one hand and moving the other in the air as if that motion would make him remember. "I forgot the name, anyway, when was the last time you had some action between the sheets." 

Aaron didn't even bother to look at him, he just kept writing on the file he was working on. "Yeah, we're not talking about my sex life."

"Because you don't have one," his friend mocked him.

And he was completely right. The last time he made love was with his now ex wife Haley, over two years ago. They've been divorced for four, but they've had a relapse only once or twice. Neither went great.

"I'm just saying, you could use some help. Download the app, uh..."

"Facebook?" Aaron suggested as a joke. 

"Hotch, that's old fashion, and it won't get you a date anyway." Rossi squinted his eyes trying to focus. "Tinder!" he said loudly. It looked like a light bulb lit up on top of his head. "Get tinder. Or bumble, that's the other one."

"How do you even know that stuff," Aaron questioned, closing the last folder. He was done for the day.

"Because I don't live under a rock, I adapt to the new generations."

It's not that Aaron didn't want to date people, it was actually the opposite. But he didn't have the time, his job consumed his life completely and any free time he had went directly to his son Jack. 

And he was also insecure in that aspect. Haley was his first and only girlfriend and ended up marrying her, so he practically had no experience with dating and that embarrassed him somehow.

He sure notices how women flutter their eyelashes at him every now and then and how some police officers bite their lips while he speaks when presenting a random profile at some local PD, a few even sighing deep. But he's not like that, he doesn't flirt back. Or at least he's not aware if he does.

Actually, one time, when the team went to Phoenix to solve a series of murders, he stayed late in the police department instead of going to the hotel with the others, to advance on the vague profile they came up with. And when a police officer, that was touchy with him all day, saw him from outside the office window, all alone, she confidently knocked on his door, decided to get some action, but he pushed her away as she got too close to his face. Even when he didn't mean to, he just panicked. He could've easily gotten something, anything.

"Think about it, think about the amazing sex that is waiting for you out there," Rossi said like one of his inspirational quotes.

And Aaron thought about it. He did look for the app on his phone when he got home that night, but didn't dare to download it.

Until three days later.

He noticed that the Tinder logo was on his home screen, which was weird. But it didn’t take much time for him to realize what had happened.

"Garcia, did you hack my phone?" He asked Penelope as soon as he abruptly entered her office, making her stand up too quickly that she almost tripped on her high pink heels.

"Uh, I don't know what you're talking about, sir."

"Don't lie to me."

"Okay, maybe. But Rossi made me do it!" She defended herself, bringing her pencil to her mouth nervously.

"Don't do that ever again. It's called privacy, Garcia," Aaron rebuked her before walking away, but she stopped him.

"Sir! Just so you know, I may have created an account and... started one ... or two conversations.” Of course she did, “Sir you have a lot of matches, like a lot lot. I selected your best pictures and I made sure to put one of you and Jack, which is my favorite photo by the way, and I don't know your age preferences so I just guessed between thirty and forty five. Oh! There is this gorgeous woman, Meredith, I think, she's a lawyer like you, very smart and has this cute dog named Luma and her eyes are-"

Aaron sighed deeply as he listened to her ramble, "Garcia."

"Sorry. And one more thing, sir, we have a case, JJ told me to-"

"I know, they're waiting for us already," he interrupted before disappearing through the door.

Aaron wasn't mad that Penelope created an account, she actually made him a favor, but it did bother him that she went through his phone, which started buzzing like crazy while Garcia presented the case, making him irritated and curious at the same time, but he put it in silence with the screen down.

"I think you may wanna check that," Rossi told him, pointing at his phone with a pen as soon Garcia was done.

"Yeah it sounded urgent," Spencer nodded in agreement, clearly clueless.

While in the jet on their way to investigate the case, Aaron finally checked his phone. He opened the app a little hesitant, and went through the conversations Penelope started. 

There were five chats. And 14 matches. He was actually impressed, wondering which pictures his coworker selected that a lot of women swiped right on him.

Later that night, laying in his hotel bed, Aaron decided to stop being a coward and start a conversation himself with a woman of his choice. He has a soft spot for blondes but he always thought it was a simple coincidence.

He spent at least an hour swiping right and left, reading carefully each description and making sure no photos had that doggy face sticking out its tongue filter. 

It was quite fun if he was honest and it kept him entertained until he matched with a beautiful woman. Not a blonde.

Allison Broste, forty one years old, very dark hair and hazel eyes, five foot seven, loves sports, trauma surgeon, mother. Looking for a person that is understanding due to her job.

That was him. He knew how that worked and lived a similar life, schedule wise at least.

Unsure whether to start a conversation himself or not, Aaron decided to wait. Even through a screen he felt a little shy. But what could go wrong, other than her ignoring his message completely. Which she didn’t and actually responded to his message only one minute after he sent it. 

They talked for almost two hours while she was at work  _ "waiting for someone to get hurt" _ , were her exact words. That made him smile somehow. She had a sense of humor, who would want for someone to get hurt, right?  _ Only serial killers, _ he thought.

Their conversations were short but daily for 2 weeks, until she took the initiative and asked him to meet and go on a date.

Aaron really liked her so he agreed to meet for lunch on a Saturday, his day off. 

He had dropped Jack at Haley's the day before so he wasn't worried about that. He was more worried about what he was going to wear, he barely owned normal and appropriate clothes for a date. Only suits, workout outfits and old jeans occupied his closet. But he did find something at the very end of his pants drawer, a pair of black jeans that still had the tag on because he forgot about them, and decided to match them with a navy blue button down, that Haley really liked. 

_ Maybe I shouldn't wear that _ , he thought while looking at his reflection, but he was already running late.

At least that's what he thought.

He arrived on time after all and chose to sit outside the restaurant, waiting for his date to arrive, bouncing his leg anxiously. His mind was full of negative thoughts. What if she stood him up and didn't show up, or if she was an impostor. Or worse, what if she seduced men and killed them. He'd seen so many weird people due to his job and some are great liars, it was hard not to picture a thousand different outcomes. 

It was his first date since he got a divorce and he didn't know how these things worked so he was a little paranoid.

Thankfully, only five minutes into waiting, a feminine voice called his name, which made him look up from the menu he had already read twice, "Aaron?" 

The attractive woman looked like the pictures, which was a first good sign.

"Yes. Hi," he responded standing from his chair.

"I'm Allison," she said with a nervous laugh putting a strand of her very long and soft looking hair behind her ear.

"Hi, again, nice to meet you." With a mind of his own his hand extended to greet her, way too formal, but she went for a hug instead.

Her soft scent was nice, flowery. She was definitely prettier in person and didn't look a day over thirty five. Her hair was the darkest shade of brown and so long that it almost reached her hips. Aaron could tell she loved sports since she looked in shape and her floral blue dress, which accentuated her skin tone, revealed her very toned legs.

They had lunch in the open. The warmth of the air made him regret a bit his outfit, rolling up his sleeves, and the rays of sunshine at that time of the day were almost blinding, making them wear their sunglasses, both looking way too attractive.

The connection was instant and Aaron still had that something, whatever it was, to talk to women without appearing awkward. 

"And you have a son too?" Aaron asked her, wiping his mouth with a napkin after she brought up the topic of him being a dad.

Neither of them talked about each other's kids while online chatting. Allison never asked, and Aaron never mentioned it.

"A daughter actually, she's twenty two," she said proudly. No one ever believed her whenever she said that Stella was her daughter, they really looked like sisters, and Stella always rolled her eyes whenever she heard that comment.

"Oh wow," was all he could say.

"Yeah, I had her at nineteen, in my third year of medicine. But that didn't stop me from graduating on time, thanks to my mom," Allison explained.  _ That was impressive _ , Aaron thought.

Being a mom was never a plan in Allison's life. Who would even consider being a parent at nineteen, and the only thought of it was close to a nightmare. She only wanted to save lives for the rest of her life. 

But she got knocked up after dating this guy only for three months. She was stupid and irresponsible. Abortion was her first thought, and giving the baby up for adoption. But she was an over thinker and knew if she went for the option number one, she would've wondered the rest of her life what would've happened if she hadn't. Besides her mother, Lucy, found her positive blood test on her room before Allison decided to tell her the news,  _ "You're keeping the baby," _ she confronted her. 

Lucy considered abortion a sin, Allison only believed in science.

Allison didn't miss a class throughout her entire pregnancy, giving birth to Stella conveniently in the middle of obstetrics and gynecology class,  _ "This is your time to learn guys,"  _ the professor said way too excited as he helped Allison push, ready to receive the new baby. 

And before Stella was born, Lucy had offered to take care of her. Allison was brilliant, she would've never let her waste her beautiful brain to become a full time mom.

The rest of the date went wonderful, there was barely any moment of awkward silence, talking about their jobs and how similar they were. Besides their love for sports, they went to the same university but since the campus were different they never crossed paths.

Aaron felt comfortable around her and so did Allison, who was already thinking about their second date.

That was when they kissed for the first time, or more like she kissed him. He had walked her to her door after dinner and she went for it. It caught him off guard but he accepted it, thanking her, literally.

"Thank you too," she giggled.

Aaron liked her laugh, although maybe she laughed too much, even when he didn't say anything funny, she was just trying to fill the silence in the conversations. But they had so much in common that her sometimes forced laugh, was a detail.

And from that night, their relationship went uphills.

Kind of.

"How's Allison?" Emily asked him one day, while they went through some case evidence.

"She's fine, thanks for asking," he responded confused.

It's not like Aaron didn't talk about her, everyone knew about his new relationship and the team was happy for him, especially Rossi and Garcia, who bumped their fists together when Aaron unintentionally said the words ' _ my _ ' and ' _ girlfriend _ ' in the same sentence. _ 'Mission accomplished' _ Penelope murmured to herself.

Aaron and Allison made their relationship official after four months, eight dates, five make-out sessions and three sexual encounters that happened at his apartment. By then Allison had already met Jack, when one day Aaron spontaneously invited her for breakfast after a long night shift at the hospital.

She wasn't a person that gets along with children so she felt a little restless around his son, not sure what to talk about. Allison never knew what to say to a child without sounding mean, even when she had one of her own once. Stella was mostly raised by her grandma, the sweetest woman on earth according to her. And when Lucy passed away, Allison was the only one who didn't spill tears at the funeral, however seeing her daughter in pain, crushed her. And since that day Allison promised to herself she would be a better mom even when Stella was already an adult by the time. Her mother's death made their relationship stronger. They tried to spend as much time together as possible, although sometimes they didn't talk much and Allison was barely home, but Stella always came back to Virginia during college breaks, even when she could stay in California.

**...**

"Stella is back from college," Allison said to Aaron through the phone.

"That's great," he cheered.

"I want you to meet her."


	2. Stella

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aaron meets Stella for the first time, and another two situations where he realizes she's gonna make his life more exciting.

The thought of meeting Stella made Aaron feel intimidated. Allison had a full grown woman as a daughter, so she could generate her own opinions about him and could simply not like him.

Stella had arrived the day before from California and wasn't even remotely interested in meeting this Aaron guy. It was always the same story with Allison, but she always agreed to meet every guy she dated just to make her mother happy and get the whole  _ 'Stella this is my sixth boyfriend of year and it's only June' _ situation over with.

That night she decided to make the dinner herself since Allison always ended up activating the smoke detector, and because she's been craving a nice vegetarian lasagna that caught her attention on her last visit to the bookstore, adding a new book to her recipe book collection.

She was already done and all dressed up when the doorbell rang, making Allison clack her high heels rushing to the door.

Stella heard her mother's immediate giggles, rolling her eyes to herself as she finished settling the table.

As soon as she lifted her head from the last glass she placed, her eyes met Aaron's. He was giving her a kind timid smile letting an adorable dimple appear on his cheek. Stella responded the same way.

"Stella, this is Aaron," Allison started their introduction, "Aaron this is my daughter."

He only nodded, "Hi, it's nice to finally meet you."

Stella furrowed a brow but kept her smile on her face, "Nice meeting you too."

Aaron did not expect Allison's daughter being a tattooed redhead, almost gothic looking woman. But Stella chose a dramatic dark eyeshadow, a very red lipstick and fake septum ring just to scare the new guy. But her black tight corset was something she wore more than she admitted to.

Allison invited Aaron to the table as Stella served the three plates. His immediate thought was to help his girlfriend's daughter bring the dishes, but Allison was already installed on her seat.

"So what exactly do you do, Aaron," Stella asked him as soon as she sat on her chair, leaning back.

She was across from him at the table for six, only with three seats taken. The light above them made Stella's hair look more red than it actually was and the lamp style made it look like an interrogation room, with the difference that Aaron was used to being the one doing them, and this time Stella was playing that role.  _ She would be great at it _ , Aaron thought. She had an intimidating look, which was an act but he didn't know that yet.

He took a sip of his wine before answering, "I work for the FBI."

"That part I know, Allison told me. I meant what's your job."

He found curious the way Stella called her mother by her first name, making it inevitable to profile her: She probably doesn't like her mom and wasn't that close to her.

"I work at the behavioral analysis unit. I'm a profiler." She furrowed a brow. That sounded like a made up career on her head.

"And..." Stella expected more information, she needed more information.

"We study the behavior of killers, serial killers and that allows us to catch them, in the act most of the time," he explained. Allison was a little embarrassed by her daughter being nosey, but she let them have the conversation anyway.

"Have you ever been shot?"

"Stella!" Her mom snapped.

"It 's okay." Aaron moved his leg under the table touching Allison's. "I have actually, multiple times, on separate occasions."

"Where," Stella kept going.

"Shoulder, leg, chest," he said, having flashbacks with each one.

"You must have cool scars, then," Stella commented, finally taking a bite of her food.

"I'm not sure if they are cool, but yes I have some scars."

And after that conversation, dinner didn't go that bad. Stella softened up.

Out of all Allison's boyfriends, Aaron was in the top 5 so far, only surpassed by Kellan, who was in a band and was an actual rockstar.

"Profile me," Stella challenged him during dessert.

"I don't profile people outside work," he excused, clearly lying since he already started her profile in his head.

"What am I studying at college," she insisted, ignoring what he just said.

He thought about it for a minute since Allison never actually told him what was Stella's future degree.

"Your hands are stained with paint, the oldest one probably from 3 days ago, so you paint, my guess is acrylic. Your curiosity about me tells me that you need to be in control and know everything, and you have a lot of visible tattoos so you aren't afraid of not getting hired at a conventional job. My guess is you are studying something related to art and want to work an independent job."

Stella looked at her mother, biting her bottom lip from the inside trying to hide a smile. Aaron didn't hesitate to say a word.

"I didn't tell him anything," Allison giggled when her daughter glanced at her.

Stella stayed quiet, almost annoyed that Aaron guessed most of it right.

"She's studying visual arts at the university of California and wants to be a body painter, among other things," her mom added.

Those other things being a tattoo artist, opening a gallery when she's much older after traveling around the world selling her art. She was quite a dreamer.

Stella was intrigued about what else Aaron could possibly know about her, without actually knowing her.

But that feeling went away after not seeing him again after almost two weeks.

That was when Aaron stayed at Allison's place for the first time, and also had sex with her in her bed for the first time. He just wished his girlfriend wasn't so loud, even knowing her daughter could hear her, she still screamed his name way too loud. She acted like the complete opposite of his ex wife Haley.

He was used to the ' _ quiet, Jack could hear us _ ', that turned him off every time. And he often wondered if he was the reason his ex wife acted like a corpse in bed, which made him insecure for the longest time, trying to spice things up but Haley was never open to that. But she acted like that only because she was cheating on him.

His current girlfriend made him think the other way. Allison acted like a porn star, most men would find that hot, but he didn't.

"Aaron, I have to go," Allison whispered in the middle of the night, waking him up. "I should be back in the morning."

It was almost 4 a.m when she left and Aaron decided to go downstairs to make himself a cup of coffee and catch up with some files he had left for the day before and didn't get to finish them.

"Why are you still here," Stella growled at him walking into the kitchen, wearing only a big graphic shirt that wasn't long enough to cover her butt. He didn't respond. "I mean why at 4 in the morning, in the kitchen," she clarified when she realized she sounded mean the first time.

Aaron's eyes went involuntarily to her legs, which were painted almost completely with different kinds of colorful flowers.

He quickly looked away focusing his eyes back on the file as he caught himself staring, "Your mom was paged from the hospital. Car crash. I guess I couldn't sleep anymore."

"Yeah me neither," Stella complained as she opened the fridge reaching for a donut.

She, in fact, heard some of her own mother's exaggerated performance. She was used to it though, it was like that most of the time Allison had a man over when Stella was still in high school, so she would always put her headphones on with blasting music.

But somehow this time she was pissed. She thought Aaron Hotchner was too good for her mother as soon as she met him. And she tried to put on music but she couldn't, tempted to hear  _ him _ make a noise and wondering if he really was that good in bed, as her mother implied with her whines of satisfaction.

"What are those," Stella mouthed after biting her donut, pointing at the folders Aaron had on the kitchen island.

"Some files," he answered without taking his eyes off the one he was working on, afraid that his eyes would meet her legs again.

"May I see?"

It was rare of Stella to ask for something politely, but she didn't want to sound mean again for no reason.

Aaron hesitated. There were some harsh cases on those files.

Stella bit her donut again, waiting for his answer.

"I don't think you should."

"Are they really that bad."

"For you, I don't know."

"I don't believe you."

"Why would I lie."

"I don't know," and then they stayed quiet for five seconds, "Describe one to me. Every detail, then show me. Maybe that could make it more  _ bearable, _ " she suggested.

Stella's seen dead people before. Allison sometimes had to take her to the hospital when her, now deceased, grandmother couldn't look after her, and once or twice she would escape from her mom's office and visit some patients.

She was twelve when she saw the first one. Exposed bones and burned skin. She didn't even flinch. She only shouted "Whoa!" in front of the doctor that was trying to bring the man back to life, which made Allison get called after by her chief.

Aaron went through the files, choosing one of the eight from the messy pile he had. "Okay. This one," he started, clearing his voice, "it happened last week in New York city. Serial rapist who left his victims barely alive, dumping them in dark alleys of Brooklyn. All found beaten up with their achilles tendons cut so they weren't able to escape or look for help. There were 5 women, only 2 of them made it." Stella leaned on the countertop and listened carefully, imagining in her head everything he said.

"That 's it?" She said unsatisfied.

"That 's it."

"Can I see it now?" Stella reached for the file in his hand, and he handed it still unsure. She opened the folder, seeing the criminal's face in a picture attached, he looked like the average white male. "You caught him, right?"

"We did, yes."

She also went through the victims photos. They were all blonde, some of them around her age, and like Aaron said they were badly beaten up, with their faces swollen and ripped clothes. Her stomach reacted to the picture of a girl that looked exactly like her friend Izzy, her best friend in California, the one that looked after her kitty Misty whenever she was in Virginia and the person she'd be completely lonely without. They've been thick as thieves from the very first day of class, almost four years ago.

Seeing the dead girls expression's in their faces made Stella sick, making it impossible for her to eat the last piece of her donut. "Well, thanks for ruining New York to me forever," she leered as she gave him the file back.

"I told you."

"I'm kidding,"  _ kind of _ , "It reassures me knowing that the bastard isn't on the streets anymore."

Stella then went back to her room, with the image stuck in her head, of how Aaron had looked at her legs when she walked in the kitchen. She was still awake by that time and got hungry so she went to get something to snack on. And seeing him there sitting in her kitchen made her stomach tickle in an unfamiliar way; she wasn't wearing any pants, but she pretended it wasn't a big deal. Because it wasn't. Being half naked, alone in a room with a forty year old man. An attractive one if she was honest.

When Stella was fifteen she had her first and only crush on one of her mom's boyfriends. He was younger than Allison and looked like a blond Johnny Depp. He was dreamy, and he was the one that woke her preference for older guys, after Johnny himself clearly. That was the first time her stomach tingled because of a man.

Then at the age of eighteen she had her first boyfriend. First everything. Adam was much older than her with a 10 year age gap. But she fell in love and was easy to manipulate since her grandmother had just suddenly passed away, so she ended up with her heart broken only seven months later. He was her only official relationship and after that, Stella only had casual hookups with guys her age, but she's always liked older men.

And at the beginning of her Junior year in college, she ventured to explore with older men again, without the judgement that all were like Adam. And it went amazingly. Stella used men the same way they used her. She definitely likes mature men, and there was no way back to dating nor screwing boys.

Stella always chooses the brain over looks, a clever mind is a huge turn on to her. And Aaron proved the first time they met that he was smart. But he had the looks too, and that made it even hard for her not to think about him in that way.

Her crushes became official for Stella when she illustrated their faces in her messy art style, and that hadn't happened with Aaron yet, so she still denied it.

Until after a night out with her high school friends, she kind of confessed her attraction to Aaron himself.

It was one of the nights where Aaron stayed at Allison's, he was called from work to investigate a case. It was 3 a.m and he was almost ready to go when Stella stumbled on her high heels while opening the door.

"Oh shit!" She giggled, barely closing the door behind her.

"Good morning," Aaron said while putting on his tie, standing in the dark living room. Only the street lights peeking through the blinds illuminated the room.

Stella lifted her head and bit her bottom lip in a big guilty smile. She got caught by an FBI agent, drunk and a little high. She didn't usually mix both drugs but that night she went overboard since she hadn't partied with her hometown friends since the last day of highschool.

"Oh hi agent, how is it going."

_ Stella was definitely under the influence _ , Aaron thought. She had no reason to call him an agent.

She struggled to take her heels off and walked barefoot to the stairs, putting her hand at her eye level, blocking her side view as she walked by.

"You alright there?" Aaron asked, afraid that she would fall off the stairs.

"I'm perfectly fine sir don't mind me thanks for asking." Every word came out perfectly, one after the other.

She walked two steps and leaned to the wall that saved her from falling, laughing at herself.

Aaron left his tie knot half way through and rushed up to her, "Here I got you." He grabbed her by the waist, touching the soft skin between her cropped sweater and tight skirt.

"Thank you. Damn you smell good," drunk Stella declared, while sniffing close to his face. Aaron couldn't say the same for her. She smelled like vodka and cigarettes.

He walked her to her room ignoring the comment she made and sat her on the bed before turning the bedside light on.

"Okay, can you handle it from here?" He asked with the straightest face.

"Maybe, can you keep me company for a while," she whined while unzipping her skirt from the side, revealing her black lacy underwear.

His eyes slowly went to her uncovered hip. She had a big rose tattoo there, but he could only see the beginning of it.

"No. I'm late. Goodnight Stella," he snapped kind of nervous.

"Aaron, wait."

He stopped right outside the door turning around but she didn't say anything, she just looked at him while she took her skirt off completely and walked up to him, grabbing the doorknob as she slowly closed the door.

"Goodnight."


	3. Sitter

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Stella realizes how much she likes Aaron. He asks her to look after his son for a few hours, loving how good she is with his son. Aaron surprises her at work

It's been almost two weeks since Stella insinuated to Aaron, and the last time she saw him. She drank a lot that night but remembered it all, feeling her cheeks burn every time she thought about how her mom's hot boyfriend saw her in those conditions.

Aaron, on his side, didn't think too much about it although the way she teased him provoked something inside. Why would she even flirt with him in the first place. She was very drunk and thought it was inappropriate, but Aaron still saw her in the only way he shouldn't for a split second.

He was aware that she probably had some issues. Allison told him that Stella didn't have a present dad figure, and according to what he's seen due to his job, that usually turns out to be manifested in sexual desire towards men that act as paternal figures, but he didn't think she saw him as one.

She is an attractive woman, he's not blind. But she's closer to his son's age than his and thinking about it disturbed him.

But then again,  _ she was drunk so that must've been the only reason she took her skirt off in front of me, right? _ He kept repeating to himself.

One afternoon, Allison called Stella from the hospital at around three p.m, saying that she needed a huge favor from her. Stella had just arrived from work and was stretching her body, doing some light yoga in her room. She worked at a small ice cream shop near her house and sometimes, especially during summer time, she had to stand up all day which affected her back by the end of the shift.

"I need you to be a babysitter for a few hours."

"What, to whom?"

"Aaron, I mean his son Jack. You have to pick him up from school, and just take him home, Aaron will pick him up at night. I gave him your number so he will call to ask you personally, please be nice to him," Allison implored.

_ Shit.  _ Stella wasn't ready to see him yet.

Aaron called her moments later from the car and shortly explained to her that Jack had just started school again, that his mom was at work and he was called last minute to a case in Maryland, so he couldn't make it to school, but that he should be able to pick him up later. Aaron had promised his ex wife that he would pick him up, but a missing little boy changed his plans.

Stella's cheeks flushed a little while talking to him through the phone, it was mainly because she remembered the way she acted the other night, but she also found Aaron's phone voice seductive, deeper, it could almost tickle her ear.

Right after Stella accepted kindly, he texted her the school address.

Forty minutes later Stella was parked right outside the school and stood there, leaning on the car door for a while, trying to identify Jack with a picture Allison sent her once, but all the kids looked the same to her. Thankfully, Aaron let his son's science teacher know that Stella would pick him up, so she brought Jack to her.

"I like your hair, you look like Ariel," Jack commented on their way home.

She looked at Aaron's son through the rearview mirror.

"Thank you Jack, I am in fact a mermaid, but you can't tell anyone," she giggled when she saw him open his mouth in shock.

Stella started to dye her hair after getting tired of people saying she looked exactly like Allison, and before going back home she cut it in a bob and put a ruby red color that made her green eyes pop up.

When they got home, Stella prepared a small bowl of chopped fruit for him and to keep him entertained, she gave him some paints along with a small canvas that she wasn't planning to use.

She was used to taking care of kids since she babysat while she was in high school and still does it during her free time in California to make some income.

The clock marked 7.30 p.m. and there were no signs of Aaron yet, so she just let Jack keep painting in the living room and watching some cartoons, while she reheated the food she cooked herself for lunch, and baked some chocolate chip cookies for dessert. She always needed to eat something sweet after a meal.

Right after she took her last bite, the doorbell rang. "I'll be right back Jack," she said, patting his shoulder gently as she walked to the door.

"Hi, come in," Stella said shyly as a little bit of color popped on her cheeks.

Aaron followed her to the kitchen and noticed that her bare feet were stained with dry paint.

"Dad!" Jack jumped from his chair to hug him.

"Hi buddy!"

"We were just finishing dinner," Stella hesitated. "Hope the menu it's okay, I don't really know what he eats."

"It's perfect. Thank you." Aaron looked at her with a kind smile that showed the dimple on his cheek that Stella found adorable.

The both of them sat at the table, waiting for Jack to finish eating.

"We painted, so you have to hang  _ that _ somewhere in your house," Stella pointed at the canvas standing on the center table, a few feet away behind Aaron.

He tried to identify what it was but it had no shape. "What is it exactly?"

Stella gasped, fake offended. "It's clearly a cow."

"It's not a cow. It's a bunny in a cow costume," Jack corrected her, making them chuckle."I think I'm full," he said while rubbing his tummy.

"It's okay, you can take some cookies for later if you want." And by only hearing the word  _ 'cookies' _ , Jack's face lit up.

Stella prepared a tupperware with six cookies, for him and his dad. Aaron followed her movements with his eyes, he didn't expect her to be that good with his son since Allison was cold towards Jack most of the time.

"You have a great son, Aaron," she confessed while handing him the plastic container.

He smiled proudly. "He really is. Thank you Stella, for looking after him."

"Oh it was a pleasure, we had so much fun, right Jack." She crouched in front of him offering a fist bump, the kid nodded and reached Stella for a hug, "Your secret's safe with me," he whispered in her ear.

Stella walked them to the door and felt the urge to hug Aaron, but she couldn't, instead she slightly touched his arm to get his attention. "I, uh, sorry about the other night, the way I acted was-"

"I don't know what you're talking about," he responded with a serious expression.

That was a lie, and Stella got it, but Aaron thought about it more than he should've. He still had the image of Stella walking towards him, in her underwear swinging her hips, stuck in his head. "Thank you again."

Her cheeks lit up for the third time that day, only because of him."Bye."

It would be untrue if Stella said that Aaron was just one of Allison's boyfriends. She really, really liked him. And after knowing him for less than two months and seeing him four times, he occupied her thoughts.

She felt guilty, it was her mother's boyfriend after all. But she wished he wasn't. She still thought he was way too good for Allison, and was sure that she would dump him eventually like she's done with most of her partners.

Stella has her reasons to not like her mother sometimes, mostly because for things she did and didn't do as a parent in the past, but she is an okay mom now and she does love her, deep down.

Allison let Stella stay in one of the three apartments she owns in California -she has bought properties throughout the years and insisted that her daughter must have a place of her own- and sends her money, but Stella spends it only when her pantry looks empty, and also pays for her school allowance. She wasn't that present in Stella's childhood since she was focused on her career and she missed most of her adolescence. Her daughter now understood that it was for their future, but Allison still felt the need to compensate for everything she missed with money.

...

Allison arrived from the hospital moments after Aaron left, looking exhausted. Stella had just finished cleaning the kitchen and the little bit of mess Jack left in the living room. "How did it go?" she asked, leaning her tired body on the counter while sitting on a chair by the kitchen island.

"It went great, Jack is a good kid." Stella noticed the heavy undereye bags her mom had, which was unusual, and decided to prepare her something to eat. Cooking was her love language.

"Yeah he loved you. Aaron told me that Jack talked about you the entire drive home." Stella chuckled, handing her mom a cup of fresh prepared tea. Sometimes Allison wished she was more like her daughter in that aspect, she's always been great with kids.

They rarely talked about life and that night Allison felt pure joy while hearing her daughter talk to her about her future, like they were friends. Stella had less than a year left until her graduation and still hadn't decided which path she was going to take. ' _ You'll know at the right time' _ Allison told her, since she felt the same way when she was a resident. Besides trauma, she also loved neurosurgery, but the rush of operating on someone who had just been through a major accident excited her, in the best way possible.

She noticed the stress on Stella, and thought about something that could make her relax before going back to college. And after calling Aaron for advice, Allison thought about a weekend at a lake cabin was the best option, so she made a reservation that same night after organizing their work schedules and making them coincide for the weekend after her own birthday.

...

The very next day Aaron decided to have a day dedicated to his son, trying to compensate the day before. The team didn't receive any cases that day so he took the afternoon off.

He went to pick Jack up in the middle of his classes, saying that he had a doctor's appointment which was a little white lie.

"Are we really going to the doctor?" His son asked him as they walked to the car.

"Not quite, but what do we always do after going to the doctor?"

"Get ice cream!" Jack responded excitedly.

Aaron knew that Stella worked at the ice cream shop near his house, the one he visited at least every two months with his son, which made him wonder if he had met Stella before.

_ He has seen her, two years ago for the first time, but neither remembered. Back then her hair was long and black, like Allison's, and she didn't have that many visible tattoos. They didn't even interact since Stella's coworker was the one who took his order, but he did notice her, turning his head to her direction as he heard her laughing with another customer, looking at her casually for one second only. _

Stella had still three hours left before her shift ended and the shift had been slow for a summer day, so she kept herself entertained by going through the daily pictures Izzy sent of Misty that boosted the serotonin, which made her miss her soft fluffy ginger fur, making some doodles of her cat on her journal, while she listened to whatever music her manager Gina had on as she did her boss stuff at a corner table behind the counter. Gina was the coolest boss and she always had a spot for Stella whenever she was back from college.

She lifted her eyes from her journal after she heard the shop bell sound. As soon as she saw him walk through the glass door, her heart started pounding, feeling her chest become a little tight as if her heart needed more space to beat, and her cheeks started to burn before she could even say a word.

Stella had to clear her throat to make sure she didn't randomly lose her voice, "Hey guys, I didn't expect to see you again so soon."

Her work outfit wasn't the most attractive clothes, but Aaron thought her baseball cap looked adorable.

"Hey. We were on our way back home and just stopped for an ice cream." He was a bad liar when he wasn't supposed to lie.

"Sure, what's your favorite flavor Jack?" She asked while getting a cone.

"Chocolate."

"Good choice, that's my favorite too." Stella wetted the spoon and stopped before getting a scoop "Is this size okay?"

"It 's perfect," he said, following every movement she made.

"Did you know I worked here?" Stella questioned as she shaped the ice cream ball in the waffle.

"Uh, I think your mom told me once, but I wasn't sure it was this shop." Little white lies again.

"Here you go Jack." She handed it carefully to the happy little boy, making sure he was holding it right before letting it go completely, hearing his little  _ 'thank you' _ . "And what about you? Which one is your favorite?" Stella was actually curious about what flavor Aaron would pick.

"Do you have any coffee flavored?"

"Yep. Coffee chip and coffee vanilla, wanna try them first?" She offered getting the tiny spoons from the bowl in front of her. She got the two flavors samples before he even answered.

Aaron tried the chip one first, making his mouth slightly crunch as he chewed the chocolate chips. His brows raised as a positive sign. Then he tasted the coffee vanilla. Stella watched him bring the tiny spoon to his mouth, taking it out as clean as a new one.

"I like the chip one better."

Stella's hands were shaking as she prepared the ice cream, and he noticed it, smiling a little on the inside.

"How much is it?" he asked, getting his wallet out.

"Oh you're good, it's on the house," she said kindly as she handed him the ice cream.

Their fingertips touched so slightly as he received the cone, but it was enough to send Stella electric tingles through her arm to her stomach.

"I... no I won't allow that," Aaron faltered.

"Just put your wallet away and enjoy your ice cream," she argued, cleaning the spoon, hiding her eyes behind the cap.

He decided to put a twenty dollar bill in the tip jar instead. "For the excellent service." Stella's cheeks blushed once again. "Thank you, see you soon."

"Bye Stella," Jack waved at her smiling, his face was already covered with chocolate.

Stella had to take a deep breath as soon as she saw them get in the car, airing her face with her cap.

"Who was  _ that _ handsome man," Gina questioned, standing up from her chair to peek through the window.

Stella sighed deep, adjusting her hat back on. "He's my mom's boyfriend."

"Oh really, I thought he was your daddy or something. The way he looked at you, damn girl," Gina teased her, she saw the whole interaction between them.

"The way he looked at me?" Stella asked confused. She was still trying to recover but her heart wouldn't stop pounding.

"Yeah, he almost ate you with his eyes."

Gina tended to exaggerate things sometimes so Stella didn't believe her completely. But she liked the idea of Aaron wanting to eat her with his eyes.


	4. The BAU

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Stella meets Aaron's coworkers at her mother's birthday. She has chemistry with Spencer Reid, Hotch feels jealous.

Every year Allison went big on her birthday, or at least tried to. Most of the time she ended up being paged from the hospital. But on this occasion she made sure the hospital had a backup trauma surgeon on call that night.

She invited her work friends -and only friends-, her younger sister Sadie and Aaron's co-workers. Allison insisted to her boyfriend that he should invite them, she didn't want medicine to be the only topic of conversation that night. Besides she's never met Aaron's friends and this was a great instance to do so.

The team had just arrived at the BAU from a hard case and most of them were in need for distraction, so Aaron told them last minute about Allison's birthday party since he wasn't sure he was going to arrive on time.

"You're all invited."

"And you're just letting us know? I don't have a present," Penelope complained.

"She doesn't want gifts, so you're good."

"Tell her thank you for considering us, but I'm going to pass," JJ said tiredly. The case affected her a lot, any case that involved a kid messed with her head, thinking about her own son.

"I'll pass too," Reid said.

"Oh no pretty boy, you are coming with us to have some fun, it's an order," Morgan stated, bumping his arm softly.

"I'll text the address to the group chat."

Aaron was actually excited to have a good time with his friends and Allison's. And was a little nervous about meeting her sister.

Sadie was the one organizing the party since that was literally her job, event manager. That's why Allison always went big on her birthday. But this time it wasn't really a party, it was more like a simple gathering in the backyard.

Stella became her assistant for the afternoon, and not by choice.

Despite getting along with her aunt, she was a pain in the butt when it came to organizing stuff. Sadie was bossy and strict. Everything had to be perfect. And Stella is the complete opposite. She thought that the more spontaneous something was, the better.

But there she was, putting the last string of lights in the backyard right where Sadie told her to.  _ Thank god it was the last thing to do _ , she thought.

The yard looked very nice. Sadie had borrowed a couple of tables and chairs from her work, and the food she chose was from the best place she knew, where they also gave her discounts since she was a regular and had a partnership with them, so she used the entire budget her sister gave her. And the holiday lights made it look cozy even when it was a hot night.

Allison arrived at around 8 p.m. along with her coworkers, only five out of seven could make it. Which was fine with her.

"Stella, I'm home," she said, knocking her daughter's door.

"Come in," Stella responded loudly. 

"You look nice," he mom complimented her sitting next to her in the bed. Stella lifted the brow she was brushing with clear gel as a response. She was dressed normally.

Stella reached for a tiny box from her drawer and handed it to Allison, "Happy birthday." Her mom only said  _ 'aw'  _ as she opened the box. It was a delicate watch. "That will match better with your dress than your apple watch."

They weren't really huggers so Allison held her hand instead. "Thank you, it's beautiful."

Soon after that, Stella joined everyone in the backyard. Her mom looked happy around her friends, and Aaron, who had just arrived. She couldn't help looking at him for more than she should've. He looked so attractive and his black button down matched with her black, kind of see through, blouse. She was wearing a top underneath it to look less revealing, but her tattoos were still noticeable. And Aaron couldn't help himself but pay especial attention to them.

Confidently she went up to the group to greet everyone, standing next to her mom that was four inches taller than her that night.

All of Allison's friends looked the same after not seeing them for over six years. "Oh my, she's blossomed," one of them said. The creepy man as Stella called him when she was younger before she knew his name was Jason, and he clearly still was.

That comment made her bring her shoulders forward as she crossed her arms in her chest, regretting a bit her outfit choice, so she stepped back, right when the doorbell rang.

"I'll get that," she murmured.

"What do you mean by that," Aaron snapped after she left. His body tensed up. Allison thanked him on the inside since she didn't dare to step up for her own daughter.

"Nothing, she's changed, that's all," creepy Jason responded, provoking an awkward silence.

Stella opened the door and saw five people, three guys and two attractive ladies. The blonde reminded her of her own alter ego, dressed all colorful.

"Hi, come on in," Stella said, welcoming them inside.

"You must be Stella, we are Hotch's friends," the grey haired man greeted her, shaking her cold hand. She guessed that by ' _ Hotch _ ' he meant Aaron. "These are Penelope, Emily, Derek, Spencer Reid and myself, David Rossi," he introduced them, Stella getting smiles from all of them and a sweet wave from the taller guy.

"Well hello everyone, please follow me," she said kindly, guiding them to the backyard. Then she wondered why the older man knew her name.

Aaron introduced his friends to Allison and her friends, all talking at the same time making the background music barely noticeable anymore.

After everyone was settled, Stella prepared the drinks for the new guests and handed them one by one, leaving the handsome tall guy for last. Spencer was probably the closest to her age out of everyone, so she tried to make conversation with him. But it didn't go that well. She had more in common with Penelope, who joined them later and complimented everything about her.

"Let me just say that you are very pretty instead of keeping complimenting everything about you individually." She was only on her first piña colada, so that was probably her sober personality, Stella thought. "Which I could keep going by the way, I like that tattoo in particular," Penelope said, pointing with her pinky finger at the evil looking fairy in Stellas left arm.

"I love everything about you too," Stella complimented her back, cheering with her own drink.

The moment of Sadie's yearly toast was going to arrive sooner or later. She got everyone's attention after loudly hitting her glass with a fork she brought outside just to make that sound. They all stood in a semi circle facing her.

"Sister, I'm sorry but you know I have to say a few words." She had quite a few drinks that she pretended her glass was a microphone. "I would like to say, Allison if you don't mind," her sister only nodded with an embarrassed face, she knew how emotional Sadie got whenever she drank. "I just want to say, thank you all for not leaving yet, I know that ninety percent of you have a job that requires availability 24/7."

Stella stood between Emily and Spencer, and she could hear him murmur  _ 'eighty percent actually' _ , then Penelope's  _ 'ugh' _ that made her hold a laugh.

"And Aaron, it's nice to officially meet you, although I haven't heard that much about you." She also became more honest after the third drink. That comment made everyone laugh, except the birthday woman. Allison was mortified. "I guess that's it, keeping it short this year hah! Anyway, happy forty two sis."

Later Stella went inside to cut the cake Aaron got for her mother. It was a big red velvet cake, her favorite, Stella's, but he didn't know that.

Spencer then saw her go inside and followed her to the kitchen. "Do you need a hand with that?" he asked timidly.

"Yeah that'd be great thank you. Can you get me the plates over there please," Stella pointed at the cabinet behind her. Spencer took out fourteen plates, placing them on two piles of six as he held the other two on each hand.

"You don't drink much, huh?" She inquired while cutting a piece and putting it on one of the plates he was holding. "I saw you barely touched the drink I made you."

"Oh I'm so sorry about that. I really don't, but I tried it and it was great, strong," he explained as he watched her hands getting dirty with the cream.

"I can make you another one, with less alcohol if you want." Spencer's awkwardness was gone now so she tried to keep the conversation going.

"Yeah I'd like that." He really didn't but how could he say no to her.

Seconds later Emily joined them.

"Reid's single, by the way," she kind of whispered to Stella, even though Spencer had just gone outside to hand the first round of cake to the guests.

"Who 's Reid."

"Spencer." _ Oh Right! _ She liked how they called each other by their last names. She particularly liked how  _ 'Hotch' _ sounded, thinking about how they could call her  _ 'Bro' _ , as in short for Broste, and laughing on the inside at her stupid idea.

"Ahah! Yeah, he's too young," she thought out loud while cleaning the sharp knife with her finger after cutting the last piece.

"How's that, he's older than you," Emily responded confused.

"Right." Stella turned to the sink, widening her eyes to herself. "He's cute I guess, smart."

"Oh you have no idea, he's full of surprises."

Then Stella decided to prepare Spencer another drink, softer as she promised.

Bartending was her first job in California, so she knew a lot about drinks. She didn't last that long at the job though, since most of the time she worked until 4 a.m. just to wake up four hours later and go to class looking and feeling like a zombie, which was prejudicing her grades so she stuck to babysitting.

"This is a Mojito, I put less alcohol than the normal amount so I hope you like it," Stella handed him the drink with a flirty smile. Spencer might be younger than her ideal man, but he was very attractive to her eyes.

"Oh thank you so much." He brought the tall glass to his mouth and tasted it, squinting his eyes, "That's pretty good actually." He liked it because it tasted like juice and ended up drinking it in five sips. "How do you know how to make all of these."

Spencer was interested in her, she looked tough but was actually very sweet and outgoing. He asked her about college and the future, which was all Stella thought about, the future. And talking to Spencer about it, just the two of them, sitting on the chairs by the pool in her backyard while ignoring everyone else, somehow cleared her mind. He was a wise young man with good advice. And Stella was so impressed by him, the way his brain worked was something she's never seen before.

At some point of their conversation Spencer started to recite the first page of Harry Potter and the philosopher's stone, after Stella mentioned it was her favorite movie. She wasn't much of a reader but she did read the entire saga a long time ago.

"Does that mean you can read yourself a bedtime story with your eyes closed whenever you want?" Stella asked him, genuinely astonished.

"Pretty much, yeah," he responded, giving a thin smile.

Aaron glanced at them from far every once in a while, pretending he was listening to whatever Allison's friend was bragging about. He didn't expect not liking his girlfriend's friends, but the only one that was down to earth was the pediatric surgeon.

He got curious as to what Stella and Spencer could possibly talk about, they were so different. Maybe that made them connect. And for some reason he felt jealous of Reid. Aaron hasn't really talked too much to Stella, about the things that mattered. He wished she could open up to him. Maybe he should be the one opening up.

"Hey genius, we're leaving," Morgan said to Spencer, snapping them both out of the strange conversation. The topic was the shrimp mantis. Spencer enlightened Stella about how that animal sees more colors than any other living being, after she told him how much she enjoyed mixing acrylic paint to make another color, wishing to create a never seen before shade of purple, her favorite color.

"Already?" He questioned looking at his watch. It was almost 2 a.m. "oh it's late."

"Yeah it's late, come on."

Stella looked around the yard, seeing that all of Allison's friends had left already and Stella didn't even notice.

"Bye pretty girl," Penelope said, kissing Stella's cheek as she stood up from her chair, smudging her lipstick on the redhead's face. Spencer waved at her walking behind Derek who was almost dragging him to go.

The part Stella hated the most about being Sadie's family event assistant was that she always ended up putting everything back on her own, because her aunt drank way too much and wasn't in the conditions to do anything safely afterwards. She had real drinking problems, but didn't admit it only because she doesn't drink on weekdays. She's a weekend alcoholic, which is a very real thing.

Stella was putting the leftover food in some trays when Aaron came up to her.

"You got along with Spencer I noticed." He was putting away all the crumpled napkins in a trash bag and collecting the straws.

"Yeah, I've never met someone like him," Stella responded nervously. Being alone with Aaron in any situation made her body react a certain way and she still wasn't used to it. _ Maybe I have a heart condition _ , she thought, because her heart always pounded fast and hard whenever he was around, afraid that he could actually hear it. "Where's Allison?"

"She went to take a bath."

"Aren't you supposed to join her," she mocked him without lifting her eyes from the food.

"I'd rather be here with you."  _ What?  _ "I mean it's a mess, I can't let you clean alone, and Sadie passed out on the couch like two hours ago."

Stella chuckled to the thought of her aunt sleeping with her mouth open like she always did. "Right. Thanks."

They ended up cleaning the backyard in their separate ways. But they still glanced at each other. Making one single eye contact that made Stella's cheeks lit up a soft red, only because of Aaron. No one had ever made her cheeks burn more than him, just by existing.

Stella later went inside, to finish cleaning the kitchen. Besides the plates for the cake, there were at least sixteen glasses. She loved making people drinks and serving them food, but the cleaning part was always mortifying.

But then again, Aaron came to the rescue to speed up the tedious process, helping her dry the dishes and cups, putting them back in the cabinets.

"So you're staying tonight?" Stella asked in a disinterested tone, focusing on scraping the food out of the dishes.

Aaron thought about the correct answer, not knowing whether that meant she wanted him to leave or to stay. "I'm not sure."

"Look at you two, bonding," Sadie interrupted walking to the kitchen, making Stella turn around. "Oh don't mind me sweetheart, I just need a drink."

"Yeah, a drink of water," her niece snapped, she didn't like it when Sadie kept drinking for no reason.

"I can take it from here, you go take care of her," Aaron said in his soft voice.

Stella dried her hand on her pants and took Sadie upstairs to her room since the guest room wasn't in the condition to be used since her grandmother passed away, which used to be her room.

As soon as Sadie's butt touched the bed, her body gave up and started to snore immediately. "This bitch," Stella murmured as she adjusted her aunt in the right way, with her head on the pillow. There was no way she was going to sleep in the same bed as the living horn that made the four walls of her room shake. She took her aunt's heels off and laid her on her side, just in case she decided to throw up in her sleep and save her from choking on it.

"Is she sleeping in your room?" Allison asked Stella when she closed the door behind her, her mom had just finished her bath.

"Yep."

"And you?"

"I'll just sleep on the couch."

"Well, Aaron's waiting for me, so goodnight," she said pointing at her own room with her head.

Stella's jaw involuntarily clenched but disguised it with a fake smile, "Right, goodnight."

And after making sure everything was in order, Stella finally crashed in the living room, taking off her pants and covering herself with a big blanket they kept inside the couch hidden storage.

She checked her phone and saw a new instagram notification, from a  _ 'Blackqueen666' _ . It was Penelope who had followed and tagged her in a photo she took from the two of them and Spencer, who wasn't tagged anywhere.

Garcia had made them pose in a specific way, as if they were a trio taking a prom picture, Penelope hugged Stella from behind as Stella hugged Spencer the same way, which she thought was very cute how awkward he looked.

That same post had a picture of her new blonde friend with Aaron, in which he was smiling. Stella didn't mean to stare at that picture that long but fell asleep looking at it, with Aaron in her mind.

**...**

_ I can feel him breathing next to me. I look down at my body and I'm completely naked laying in bed. Okay. Then I look where he was laying, he was giving me his back, his bare back, but he was covered with a white sheet from his waist down. How unfair. I don't recognize the room I'm in, it's all wooden and bright with natural light. With him laying next to me, I feel this urge to touch myself, so I do. I close my eyes and start pleasing myself the way I like. _

_ "You're having fun?" I hear. His morning voice was so soothing and deep. I turn my head to him and he was looking at my body with a smirk on his face. He scoots closer to me laying on his side and takes his hand right where I had mine, doing the same thing I was doing to myself. Fuck. His touch is so gentle yet so fierce. "You're so wet baby," he whispers in my ear. He gets closer to me from behind as I'm now laying on my side too. I feel him using his hard dick at my wet entrance, entering his tip, then a little bit more as I lift one leg and place it on top of his, to give him more room. Then he starts fucking me, grabbing me by my waist, so close to me. I bring one hand to the back of his head, knotting his soft hair on my fingers. I wish I could see him right now, but I only hear his delicious grunts in my ear while he keeps fucking me hard. _

_ I moan, "Hotch." He keeps thrusting so hard, feeling our already sweaty skin against each other. "You feel so good Stella," he whispers in my ear, licking my earlobe. _

_ "So fucking good." _

**...**

The next morning at 7 a.m. Aaron was ready to leave since he was supposed to take his son to school. He kissed Allison on the forehead and went downstairs in need of coffee, but he preferred the one he had at home, besides he was running late.

As he walked to the door, he saw Stella sleeping peacefully on the couch laying face down, but her blanket had fallen off completely to the floor. He looked at her inked body for what he thought were two seconds and picked up the blanket as quietly as possible, placing it slowly on her trying not to wake her and not to look at her much. But she looked so pretty and cold,  _ maybe one blanket wasn't enough _ , Aaron thought. Stella started to move, pulling the blanket away uncovering her arms as a frown formed on her face.

She wasn't cold.

When the front door closed, Stella woke up, opening her eyes slowly and immediately feeling a good sensation in between her legs.

Even in her sleep Aaron made her stomach tickle, and her underwear wet.


	5. Lake cabin things

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A weekend at a lake cabin. Allison gets paged from the hospital. Aaron and Stella are left alone.

Aaron couldn't get Stella off his head for an entire day. But it wasn't because he saw her half naked laying on the couch that morning. It was more than that. It was the way she got along with all of his friends that made him feel some type of way. And how great she was with everybody that night, making sure everyone was having a good time and seeing her laugh with Penelope and Spencer.

The very next day after the birthday party, the team showed up early in the morning, some looking more terrible than others.

"Hey Hotch, Reid forgot to ask Stella for her number last night and he wants you to give it to him," Morgan said while they were sitting at the round table waiting for Emily and JJ that hadn't arrived yet.

"What? No, I never said that," Spencer argued.

"But I know you thought about it," Derek teased him.

"I don't have her number, I guess I can ask Allison for it," Aaron responded indifferently.

Which was a big lie. He still had her number somewhere in his contacts from the day she looked after Jack.

"Don't listen to him Hotch," Reid hissed as Morgan mouthed  _ 'Pussy' _ to his face.

And after that, Stella was never mentioned again, at least not in front of Aaron so he didn't give Spencer her contact number.

The three following days Aaron and his team spent them in Chicago working on a series of murders, catching the unsub right on time to save the fourth victim.

Aaron was so ready to finally take a break from work after he crashed on his couch that night. Even though he loves what he does, sometimes it can be overwhelming.

And his girlfriend's idea of getting out of the city to enjoy a weekend at a lake cabin was like a luxury to him, he didn't dedicate time to relax often so he thought,  _ why not _ , trying to convince himself that he would go only to clear his head and not because he knew Stella was going too.

**...**

Stella didn't understand why her mother kept trying to make a family with every guy she dated, as if she wasn't enough family for her.

Maybe she wasn't anymore since Stella only visited her on summer break. But still, they've gone on at least five weekend trips with her exes throughout her life. The first one was when she was in middle school. Allison's back then boyfriend was a ski instructor and he invited them to spend a weekend at the resort he worked at. Stella ended up breaking her left arm even under his supervision and was stuck with a cast for 10 weeks, ruining the rest of her winter break.

Although one of her favorite memories of her childhood was one with Kellan the rockstar, who took them to one of his concerts to spend three days touring with him. He even invited her on stage to sing, but she didn't know the lyrics so she just jumped around, head-banging like crazy. Stella had just turned thirteen and until this day she thought it was the coolest experience ever. Kellan was the one that introduced her love for tattoos and good music.

Now she really didn't feel like going but Allison insisted.

"Stella, please it's gonna be fun," she begged. It was a gift for her daughter after all, but she hadn't told her just yet.

A weekend at a lake cabin sounded nice actually, especially if Aaron was going too.

Stella packed the next morning, her favorite bikini, sweats and pair of shirts, one dress and more than enough underwear just in case her period decided to give her a surprise visit, even when she just ended it.

She also packed her almost completed art journal and only a few paints. Then she went downstairs to help Allison who was in the kitchen putting a lot of food in a cooler.

At nine a.m. Aaron was tying his son's shoes, already ready to go. His ex wife was supposed to pick up Jack to take him with her to visit her parents.  _ 'Can you drop him off? I'm running late', _ his ex wife texted. He'd have to do it on his way from Allison's house that was closer. He wished he could've taken his son with him to the lake, but he didn't want Allison to feel pressured to be around Jack.

Twenty minutes later Jack was shouting Stella's name from the car, waving with the biggest smile as she responded the same way walking up to him to high five him through the open window. Aaron only said  _ 'hey _ ' in his morning voice that sounded slightly deeper. He took her bag from her hand to put it in the trunk, touching her fingers by accident and that both pretended didn't happen.

And Allison really needed to make out with him just to say good morning. Stella hated her mother sometimes. His son was right there, she could at least behave in front of a seven year old child, and Stella noticed how uncomfortable Aaron got and tried to push her away in a soft way, going for an awkward hug.

The trip was only an hour long after dropping Jack at his mom's, but Stella still slept most of it. Aaron could tell she wasn't a morning person, every time he glanced at her through the rear view mirror she had her eyes closed.

The night before she fell asleep at around 4 after watching Harry Potter and the chamber of secrets for the hundredth time. Somehow any movie of that saga always calmed her late night thoughts, that recently were filled with random scenarios about her mom's boyfriend, which led her to dream about him for the sixth time that week.

After short smooth trip, they got to the cabin at around eleven in the morning.

The place was the most beautiful thing Stella has ever stayed in. It was a big A frame cabin and all wooden, right in front of the lake, surrounded by a couple of very leafy green trees. It had two bedrooms on the second floor, each with their own bathroom. Stella claimed one that had a perfect view to the lake. Its warm colors reminded her of her own room in the California apartment, and the throw blanket on the double sized bed reminded her that she had to buy one of those since the one she had got destroyed by Misty. She was a great cat, but sometimes a demon would possess her making her destroy everything she could reach.

And Stella's favorite part of the room was the big window that had a sitting area which she was so excited to use later.

A knock on the wooden wall got her attention,"Stella, your bag," Aaron said, leaving it on the chair by the door.

"Thanks," she responded shyly.

Stella liked so much the way Aaron said her name, not sure why. Maybe it was only his soothing voice that made everything sound nice. She thought about how he would sound telling Jack a bedtime story, maybe he made his voice softer, or he didn't read bedtime stories at all.

Soon after they installed their stuff, Allison suggested going on a hike to a not that known hill, but she did some research and it was perfect to replace her gym workout.

Stella wasn't much of a sports person, the most physical activity she'd happily do was dancing, sex and yoga. So she decided to stay and have some alone time to avoid third wheeling.

Waiting for her mom and Aaron to leave, she put on her bikini, applied a bunch of sunscreen on her inked skin and installed on the front deck, laying on a chair under the shade of one of the big trees, where she ended up relaxing way too much by hearing the sounds of nature, listening to leaves touching each other whenever a soft breeze appeared.

Two hours later she woke up by her mom's loud steps against the deck wooden floor. "Are you ready to have lunch?" Allison asked. She was all sweaty and agitated.  _ Hopefully it was only because of the hike _ , Stella thought.

The three of them had a picnic for lunch on the lake shore, as the family they really weren't.

While Allison shared her huge bowl of mixed fruits with Aaron as he talked about his most recent case, Stella was on the third bite of her second spinach sandwich she prepared that morning, listening carefully and picturing in her head every word Aaron said. It fascinated her how he faced real life murderers often, and the thought of him risking his own life every time scared her somehow, even when Aaron implied that it wasn't a big deal by how calm he narrated the not so tragic story, since only one person died.

"I don't understand how you do that job," Stella thought out loud.

"Sometimes I don't either," he confessed, while he played with the pieces of grass he unconsciously ripped, "But the times we get to save people just on time, almost compensate for the ones we couldn't save." 

"Well that's enough murders for today", Allison interrupted in the meanest way, "Let's go for a swim babe," she said to her boyfriend extending her hand to him as she stood up. Stella didn't bother to hide her eye roll since her eyes hid behind her sunglasses. Which was very convenient at the time Aaron took his shirt off.

"I'll look after our stuff," she offered.

Stella watched them as they walked to the water, holding hands. She really felt jealous of her mom at that moment. Taking her eyes off the book she wasn't really reading every five seconds to look at Aaron, who looked way too attractive with his wet hair pushed back.

The warmth of the sun touching her skin made her relax once again and close her eyes, enjoying the soft cold breeze that regulated the heat of the afternoon.

Moments later, while the couple were still in the lake, Stella felt a buzzing coming from her mom's bag. She reached for her phone inside after the third consecutive buzz. It was a 911 page from the hospital. She doubted a second if she should tell her right away or not. It was her weekend off, they weren't supposed to call her. So she waited. Eight minutes later they were back.

"Allison, your phone was buzzing like crazy," Stella let her know.

"Oh no, why are they even paging me, I'm on vacation." She was already pissed. She let her towel fall to the ground and checked her phone, sighing deep. The message was clear:  _ "VIP was involved in an accident, he's already in surgery but they requested you" _ . She knew that VIP meant it could be the president himself, or Dani Devito. She was the head of trauma after all, and the best in the area. "I'm sorry, I have to go."

"What, why," Stella complained, taking her sunglasses off while sitting up.

"They didn't tell me, all I know is it involves an important public figure." She started to pack all of her stuff quickly, "I'll have to take your car, Aaron."

"Yeah of course, just keep us updated," he said as he put a shirt on, watching his girlfriend struggle to fit all of her stuff in her bag. "I'll walk you to the car."

Her phone buzzed again. "Oh never mind, they're sending a helicopter."

"You're kidding," Stella chuckled.

But it made sense, why would they ask for her fast being an hour away by car, the guy would be dead by the time she arrived. Sometimes Stella forgot how important her mom's job was and that she was a star in the field.

"I'm sorry Stella, I'll be back as soon as possible."

"I know, this was your mini vacation though, maybe we all should leave."

"No, I planned it for you, actually. So you have to stay."

_ For me? _

"Are you okay with staying even when I'm leaving?" Allison subtly asked Aaron.

"Sure," he hesitated.

Stella gave her mom a kind smile before she left. Why would she want to be on vacation alone with Aaron, it was dangerous. But Allison wouldn't know that. So she just accepted to stay, at least for one day.

**...**

During the afternoon Stella stayed in the same place painting the nice view she had with some watercolors on her journal and enjoying pleasant weather. It was nice actually being alone surrounded by nature.

Aaron, on his side, went for a run that lasted almost four hours, arriving at around seven. Stella had just jumped in the water. He saw her from far and walked to the end of the dock, sitting on the edge, still regulating his breathing from his intense workout.

"You don't wanna get too close, I'm naked," Stella said, covering her breast underwater just in case, but the water wasn't that clear.

"You're naked, in broad daylight?" Aaron questioned looking at the water beyond her to avoid seeing something he wasn't supposed to.

"I am." She was only doing topples actually, her bikini bottom was still on since she was afraid to catch something in her private parts. "And it's almost night time, you can already see the moon. You should try it, It 's liberating."

"Yeah, I'll pass," he answered. 

"So you're just gonna sit there and watch me swim?" Was she flirting? Yes, unintentionally.

"I, no I uh..."

"I'm kidding, I like your company actually," she confessed. She could feel her cheeks starting to burn. Those words came out naturally.

"No, I better leave you alone. I really didn't know you weren't wearing any clothes otherwise I wouldn't have come," he said standing up.

"As you please," Stella responded before diving back in to refresh her heated face.

As he walked back to the cabin Aaron turned around, seeing Stella giving her back to the dock and staring up at the moon. Looking magical. She loved the moon, and at that moment Stella wished she could swim with her, there was something about her. She even got a tattoo of a half moon on her back. She meant a lot to her.

Stella stayed in the water until it got almost dark, enjoying her alone time. And when the sun was long gone behind the big mountains, the clear sky turned cloudy and then she couldn't see the moon anymore, feeling strong cold wind appearing which provoked small waves around her, making her get out of the water quickly and put only a shirt on, feeling the small drops falling from the sky hitting her skin. She hurried to get her stuff before they got too wet and rushed inside the cabin as the rain became more intense, seeing Aaron that was in the living room sitting on the big sectional couch with his computer on his lap. He just glanced at her as she ran upstairs.

Stella went directly to her bathroom to take a hot shower, taking her wet clothes off and stepping in the bath to clean her body and washing her hair quickly just to rinse the lake water.

Once she was done she dried her body and stared at herself naked in the mirror, wishing Aaron would randomly come in and do all types of things to her, like in the scenarios she made up in her head before bed. She got so turned on after being half naked in front of him in the lake, and seeing him all sweaty and breathing heavily due to his workout didn't help to calm her dirty thoughts.

But she couldn't handle it anymore.

Stella sat on the bench that was perfectly placed in front of the full length slightly fogged mirror and started to rub her breasts with one hand as the other went directly to her clit, massaging it in circular motions. She closed her eyes as the image of Aaron instantly appeared on her mind. She rubbed herself until she felt her wetness appear and slipped one finger in, then two. She moaned quietly while biting her bottom lip as she worked her fingers inside her, stimulating her clit at the same time. While the sound of the rain hitting the roof became louder, so did her heavy breathings and occasional moans, taking advantage of the strong noise.

As she felt the orgasm spreading all over her body, the power in the entire cabin went down, making herself finish in the dark.

_ Well, that was fun,  _ she thought. 

She blindly walked back to the shower rinsed herself down,  _ again _ , hearing a knock on the door that made her jump.

"Are you alright in there?" Aaron asked, leaning his ear to the door.

"Yep, just in the dark," she shouted.  _ Holy shit _ , she felt so embarrassed.

"I'll leave a flashlight in your bed," he said loud enough before leaving.

Aaron checked the kitchen drawers to see if there were any candles besides the flashlights. He found six and placed them in separate candlestick, putting three on the center table in the living room and the others on top of the fireplace, that didn't have any wood to lit.

Stella used the flashlight Aaron brought to look for sweatpants and a hoodie in her bag. She dried as much as she could her hair with a towel and went to the kitchen downstairs after turning her flashlight on to get the bagged sweet popcorn she meant to eat earlier.

"I didn't know there was a storm coming," she commented as she walked in the living room. Aaron was on one extreme of the couch in silence with his computer on his lap while Stella sat in the other.

"Me neither," he responded, only looking at the screen revising some random folders. 

The intermittent lightning enlightened the cabin every once in a while and the occasional thunders made Stella jump more than once.

Neither wanted to go to their respectives bedrooms yet. Aaron didn't want to be rude and just leave her there alone, and Stella, like she told him before, enjoyed his company. But at that moment she felt a little uncomfortable, after she unintentionally masturbated thinking about the man next to her.

She offered him some popcorn but he shook his head.

"So, did Allison tell you who the VIP was?" Stella was only trying to make conversation.

"Uh, no. We haven't talked since she left actually".

Silence again. It was both awkward and comfortable, the candles and rain made the room cozy.

Aaron decided to go through his downloads finding something he knew Stella would like. "I have Harry Potter on my laptop, if you're interested."

He had downloaded it once for a trip with Jack but he never got into it, watching only fifteen minutes of it.

Stella's face lit up, but he couldn't really see it. "No way. Which one."

"All of them."

"Oh shut up, Harry Potter is my favorite. Did you profile that from me?" she said jokingly, but not really.

"Maybe," he played along. Although he had noticed her  _ 'Dobby' _ tattoo on her ankle when they were having lunch earlier.

Stella grabbed the blanket that was on a basket next to the couch and scooted closer to him, but not quite, leaving the middle seat empty. He did the same and put his computer on the table. And they started watching the movie almost quietly, if it wasn't for Stella's popcorn close mouth crunches.

Aaron thought about leaving as soon as Allison left, but she planned this for her daughter. And if he left, Stella should've had too and that wasn't the point. So he decided to stay for her. Although he thought it was a bit weird since the only reason they connected was Allison. At least that's what he thought.

For Stella, this was a dream situation. And the worst.

The next morning they were getting ready to leave, Allison texted Stella that she couldn't go back yet. Aaron packed their stuff, avoiding eye contact with her. She did the same. They were a little uncomfortable for what happened the night before.

The drive back home was going to be a torture.


	6. Blame it on the rain

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Stella can't help herself anymore, but it's Aaron who makes the first move.

They were in the middle of watching the movie when Stella got up to grab a glass of water. The popcorn was making her mouth dry and Aaron closeness made her body temperature rise up.

While she drank the water in the dark, she could've sworn she saw a pair of shining eyes watching her from outside the window behind the bushes. Her soul left her body, making her drop the glass off her hand. She tried to grab it before it could hit the sink but a broken piece bounced back and made a big cut on the palm of her hand.

"Shit shit shit!" She exclaimed already in pain.

Aaron heard the glass breaking then the immediate loud cursing and rushed to check on her.

He turned his flashlight on, pointing at her and seeing the bright red blood dripping from Stella's hand on the sink. "What happened?" Aaron rushed to open the water while she pressed on her wound, bringing her hand to the running water.

"Fuck it hurts," she bit her lip hard as her wound got cleaned.

"What happened?" He asked again.

"I saw someone, or something outside and it scared me, I'm so stupid." Stella could already feel her pulse pounding on her hand, and the blood kept coming out like a river.

"What do you mean someone." Aaron was so ready to go get his gun.

"I don't know Hotch, I just saw a pair of eyes looking right at me," she snapped at him.

"Well you probably saw a bear, or a coyote."

He then walked to the kitchen door and checked outside pointing his light to the bushes, the rain was still heavy. He unlocked then locked again every door just in case. "Stay there, keep your hand up and apply pressure, I'm gonna see if there is a first aid kit somewhere."

Running upstairs Aaron checked the two bathrooms, finding a kit in his and bringing some towels along.

Stella felt like she was being punished for doing something inappropriate earlier thinking about Aaron, with the same hand that was now hurting.  _ It was a curse _ , she thought. She believed in anything and nothing at the same time, but that night every divine being out there agreed to discipline her.

"I think I'm gonna pass out," Stella said when Aaron got back. There was something about seeing herself bleeding that much.

Aaron guided her to the couch and let her sit so that her injured hand was facing him, sitting on the center table in front of her and laid the towels over the expensive looking rug underneath them.

"This is going to hurt, Stella, but it's gonna help you, okay?" He comforted her, softening his voice.

"Mmmhm."

She covered her eyes with her good hand as Aaron cleaned the blood off the other, trying to focus only on his gentle touch but it still hurt. 

He held the flashlight handle with his mouth, using both hands to work on her wound. Stella squeezed her legs together, whining. She never expected that Aaron would make her whine of unpleasant pain.

"The blood is stopping, so I'm gonna clean some more and put some strips to close the wound and then a bandage. Just five more minutes and we're done, you're doing great," Aaron promised, then putting the flashback handle back in his mouth to finish the job.

Stella uncovered her eyes to look at Aaron's focused face that sent just a little bit of serotonin through her body, but decided to look at his working hands instead which were huge compared to hers, and so warm.

Aaron was done in five minutes just like he said."Just keep your hand up," he ordered as he cleaned the mess. He went directly to the tiny laundry room that was next to the kitchen and threw the blood stained towels in the washer.

When he came back to the living room, Stella was covering her eyes with her good hand as the other was up like he advised, noticing her shoulders shaking a little.

"Hey what is it?" Aaron questioned while sitting back on the table, rubbing her shoulder gently.

"I'm such a baby," Stella complained, trying to calm her crying.

A smirk started to form in Aaron's face, that then turned into a giggle, making Stella cry again.

"Don't laugh at me," she protested, actually mad.

Aaron giggled even more, almost laughing at her face. "I'm sorry, it's kind of funny."

Stella frowned her brows and wiped her tears with the sleeve of her hoodie. "What's so funny."

"You are."

Her momentary sadness disappeared turning into a small laugh, she could see half of his enlightened face, he was smiling at her too.

"I must look beautiful right now," she mocked herself, cleaning her tears from under the nose with her sleeve.

"Yeah, you look pretty... awful," Aaron agreed with a straight face, making her chuckle. "What happened to the tough woman I met for the first time not long ago," he commented, now sitting right next to her.

Stella adjusted her body to face him, "I thought you knew that the whole dark eyeshadow thing and face piercings was a show. I just wanted to intimidate you and scare you, but clearly didn't work," she leered then looked at the flickering candle flame in front of them, realizing how close he was to her.

Aaron smiled, "Oh I can leave. Right now," he threatened, ready to stand up.

Stella grabbed his warm hand by impulse, "NO!" She became shy, letting go of his touch immediately, "I mean, no. I told you, I liked your company," she confessed once again.

Even when he told her she looked awful as a joke, Aaron thought the complete opposite. She looked prettier that night, with casual clothes and no make up on her eyes. But what he liked the most about her were her lips, that were a little swollen because of her crying. He stared at them as they stayed silent, making Stella look away, her eyes back to the flame.

She got nervous as she caught him looking at her mouth, feeling tempted to make her daydreams come true and kiss him already.

They stayed quiet for a moment while the movie kept playing in the background.

"I think we should leave early in the morning. Allison's not coming back," he finally said.

Allison hadn't texted him yet but he knew she wouldn't be able to make it back.

"Okay."

"Goodnight, then." He waited there for a second to hear her response, but her eyes were stuck on the flickering candle flame in front of her. "Stella?"

She looked back at him, her eyes stuck on his lips as she licked her own. She brought her good hand up to his face, caressing his cheek with the back of her curled fingers. He stayed still looking at her lips.

Aaron's heart started pounding out of his chest. He felt so tempted all of a sudden. Stella looked so pretty that night. Her naturally red lips looked more desirable than ever and all of these forbidden thoughts started to clog his mind. He became antsy and couldn't control himself anymore. 

He cupped Stella's face, making her slide her hand to his forearm. He held her so gently as if she was the most fragile thing in the world. And at that moment she was. Anything that happened or didn't happen was going to mess with her head.

She tried to read Aaron's expression. He looked sad. "I'm sorry," Stella murmured.

Aaron got even closer to her, leaning his face to hers, making Stella lose her breathe for a second as she inhaled his mesmerizing soft perfume, feeling a slight scent of soap. 

She parted her lips as he gave her the most delicate kiss, both closing their eyes at the same time, Aaron tasting the sweet popcorn on her lips. Her entire body shivered as if a breeze had hit the back of her neck, but all the windows were closed.

"I'm sorry," Aaron repeated her words, leaning his forehead against hers, still holding her face.

She bit her bottom lip and effortlessly adjusted herself on his lap with her hands holding his face. Leaning in close, she teased his lips with her breath at first, as if she didn't want to kiss him again just yet, rubbing her nose against his, breathing heavily one centimeter away from his mouth.

Aaron tilted forward for another kiss, but she pulled back, teasing him again.

She kissed him softly once, twice, then three times. Aaron receiving each one until she licked his top lip almost violently before going for an open mouth soft but still fierce kiss. If it wasn't because she was sitting on him, her body would've given up melting through the couch. 

She's been waiting for this moment for what it seems forever. Every cell in her body was tingling with excitement. She groped the back of his hair as the kiss intensified, feeling his tongue timidly touching hers, opening her mouth more, inviting him in, letting out a moan that echoed in his mouth.

Aaron's hands were all over her under her big hoodie, trying to memorize how soft her skin was. His touch was delicate but full of desire. At that moment he wanted her and there was no room in his mind for self control, moving his large hands to her side glutes over her sweats, squeezing them tight.

Stella felt her cheeks burning more than ever before but it wasn't from shyness like always, it was from pure longing. His warm touch didn't feel strange at all and his intense breathing gave her confidence. He was enjoying it. Aaron wanted her probably as much as she's been wanting him since the moment she laid eyes on him.

As his hands moved to her waist, hers were trying to get inside his shirt, feeling her cold touch against his skin which made him come back from wherever his mind went.

Aaron grabbed her face once again, stopping the intense make out. "We have to stop," he growled, his voice barely came out.

Stella could feel his chest pounding almost in sync with hers, both trying to regulate their breathings. "I'll stop if you really want me to," she said laying tender kisses on his cheeks, making him let out a deep sound from the back of his throat as she instinctively started to move her hips on top of him, feeling his growing bulge.

He stopped her motions grabbing her firmly by the hips, "I mean it. Please stop," he begged, but he couldn't help giving her another soft kiss on her now warm lips.

Stella obeyed, and sat back next to him. "Okay," she whispered, bringing one finger to her mouth, biting her nail anxiously.

Aaron stood up quietly and went to lock himself in his room, leaving Stella sitting there all alone. He was confused and his head was heated, he didn't want to do something without thinking straight.

Stella blew out all the candles out and sat back on the couch in the dark, only with the company of the rain, relieving the kiss, still feeling his touch and how turned on he made her. She knew and felt he was too.

At one in the morning, after fighting her own thoughts, she knocked on his door, decided to take charge. 

He wasn't sleeping either and hesitated before opening, already knowing what was coming. "What are you doing," he said as she entered his room. She walked up to him so close to his body.

"Please Aaron, just let me handle this," Stella whispered as her hand went directly to his bulge. He was still hard and in a lot of pain.

He captured her mouth with his once again, as she guided him walking backwards to sit on the edge of his bed. 

Stella kneeled in front of him, getting a hair tie from her wrist and putting her hair up. Aaron leaned to her in the dark, meeting her soft lips with his, while she firmly groped his thighs and slipped her hands in his underwear without a doubt, making him groan in her mouth.

He took his shorts off breaking the kiss, so ready to let Stella do whatever she wanted with him.

She started to give soft strokes on his hard cock. The lack of light in the room made it almost impossible for him to see what exactly she was doing, but he could definitely feel it. 

"You're so fucking hard," she murmured before bringing her mouth around his tip which made his entire body tingle. 

He decided to focus his hearing instead, listening carefully her delightful mouth sounds as he closed his eyes, licking his own lips under the sensation of his tip reaching her throat, feeling the vibrations of her voice as she moaned every time she went deep on his length. 

He couldn't believe what was happening, but it felt so good, she felt so damn good. And she was enjoying it too, feeling her panties getting soaked more and more every time he groaned.

The lights came back in the middle of it, Aaron finally seeing Stella's beautiful lips around his dick. She had some tears appearing from the corner of her eyes which he gently wiped with his thumb. 

She kept her mouth and head motions until she felt his dick pulsate, sticking her tongue out as she stroked it with her good hand, looking at his delighted face. Aaron grabbed her small ponytail while he came in her mouth, trying to hold his groans but he couldn't help it.

"Fuck," he grunted loud enough to make Stella more aroused than she already was.

She took her time to clean him entirely with her tongue, as if it was the tastiest ice cream, swallowing him completely and still sucking his dick long after he came. 

"Thank you," she murmured as she wiped the sides of her mouth, standing up and leaving the room, closing the door behind her.

Aaron's body gave up, letting himself fall back in his bed, staring at the ceiling and trying to recover from what just happened.

**...**

The ride back home the next morning was quiet and awkward. Stella looked out the window the entire time that her neck was sore afterwards, and Aaron's hands were stuck on the steering wheel grabbing it so tight that he had to stretch his fingers every two minutes.

When he dropped Stella at her house, he decided to walk her to the door. He needed to address the situation, talking for the first time that day.

"Stella, what happened last night was a huge mistake." Aaron could barely look at her. Stella stood there, only hearing the word ' _ mistake _ '.

"Just promise me you won't tell Allison," Stella pleaded. She was genuinely concerned, but deep down didn't regret a thing.

How could he not tell Allison. He cheated. He kissed his girlfriend's daughter and got an  _ amazing  _ blowjob from her too.

Later that evening Allison finally got home, knocking on Stella's open door, who had just started her painting, wearing her loud headphones. She walked up to her daughter and touched her shoulder, making Stella jump.

"Jesus mom!" Stella exclaimed, Allison's eyes went directly to the bandage in her hand.

"What happened there," she grabbed her wrist way too strong. 

"Just a cut," Stella let go of her touch. She was so into the painting, but Aaron's face wasn't recognizable yet.

Allison had to apologize to her daughter for leaving and to being able to go back. That made Stella feel so guilty, she should be the one apologizing. Stella made up the story that she spent most of the evening drawing since it started to rain, excluding the part where the power went off and the part after that, clearly.

Aaron barely had any sleep that night, struggling between breaking up with Allison, or pretending that nothing had happened.

He had a good thing with her, and now everything went to shit. But if he was honest with himself, part of his good relationship was Stella. He liked going to Allison's house the past two months because he knew Stella would be there. And the fact that his son liked her more than his actual girlfriend, after only spending time with her once, made his feelings towards her stronger. Aaron had liked Stella from the beginning, and had just now realized it. He unintentionally used his relationship to get more moments with her. And it worked.

He's never had a thing for younger women and most of the time he'd see that type of relationship with big age gaps as a sick man who took advantage of some young girl. But there he was, falling for a twenty two year old tattooed redhead who he would've never crossed paths with in his life if it wasn't because of Allison, and tinder.

**...**

The next day Aaron showed up to the BAU looking like a ghost with under-eye bags heavier than usual.

"I thought you had a vacation," Emily commented as soon as she saw him on his way to the office, but he passed by without even saying good morning.

He sat on his chair and massaged his left temple.

"May I come in?" Rossi said, sitting on the chair in front.

"You're already in."

"So, how was your weekend", David's tone implied he knew something was up with him. Aaron sighed, hesitating whether to tell him or not, but he needed advice.

"I think I cheated," he blurted out.

Correction: he definitely did. He just was in the stage of denial.

"Whoa wait a second, I thought you went with your girlfriend," Rossi exclaimed with his hands in the air, very confused.

"I did, but she got paged from the hospital, so it was just me and Stella."

"Go on," his friend demanded, but Aaron didn't say anything else and only gave his friend a concerned look. 

David's eyes wide opened once he realized.

Aaron told him everything that happened, the brief lake situation, then that the power went out and her accident with the glass and how one thing led to the other, avoiding the unnecessary details.

_ 'You're screwed' _ were his friends' literal words. Rossi advised that he should break up with Allison without telling her the real reason, otherwise he would have to see Stella again and that could turn into a disaster.

But he couldn't. He pretended nothing happened and kept seeing Allison for two more weeks but only a few times, just avoiding going to her house.

Although he still had to see Stella one last time.


	7. Kitchen (en)counter

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Stella and Aaron are left alone once again.

The day before Stella left for college, Allison organized dinner for the three of them, like the first time. But now she wanted to cook together.

Aaron arrived at around seven with a bottle of red wine and dessert prepared by himself. Well, he made the brownies but the ice cream was from the store.

As soon as Stella heard the doorbell ring, her stomach heavily tickled her from the inside.

Allison went to open the door, kissing Aaron on the lips like she always did to greet him, but she felt his coldness.

A smirk formed in Stella's face once she saw Aaron walk into the kitchen, although she disguised it immediately pressing her lips together. She said the coldest  _ 'Hi' _ to him, but she was almost crying on the inside. Crying of desperation. She had so many feelings at that moment and was trying so hard not to show any emotion. And her rosy cheeks were the only thing she could never control. Aaron noticed that. He was feeling the same way, but he was better than her at pretending, although it was impossible for him to look at Stella directly, or else his eyes would only stare at her lips.

While Allison was in charge of the sauce for the pasta, frying the onions and preparing the meat at the same time, her daughter was making the noodles from scratch.

He dangerously decided to sit on the island across from her and watched her delicate hand movements on the dough.

"Stella you should change your dress, it's gonna get dirty," Allison suggested.

"I'm wearing an apron, mom."

That was the second time Stella had called her mom in the month. Allison smiled kind of emotional but her watery eyes were only because of chopping the onions earlier. She looked at Aaron who also noticed the word that came out of her mouth. But Stella didn't even realize, it came out naturally. Maybe it was because of the guilt, she needed to show Allison that she loved her, yet she sucked her mom's boyfriend's dick .

"What can I do. I feel useless just watching," Aaron commented. Allison walked up to him making her high heels clack on the kitchen floor tiles and kissed his cheek gently.

"Babe you already made the dessert."  _ Babe, puaj.  _ "You could put on some music though."

Before going to the vinyl section in the living room, Aaron gave Stella a glance through his dark eyelashes making an intense two second eye contact. Thing that made Stella lose it, squeezing the dough way too hard.

The warm afternoon sunlight illuminated the big record shelf. They had quite a few records to choose from. Aaron searched carefully, running his fingers through the collection which went from the Red hot chili peppers to Madonna and some other band names he didn't recognize. He didn't consider himself a music guy but he knew what was commonly good. Tempted to put The Beatles white album, he went for ' _ No need to argue _ ' by The Cranberries instead. He took the vinyl that was already in the record player, putting it on its cover and replacing it with the one he chose, listening to Dolores O'Riordan's voice as he went back to the kitchen.

"Your age is showing Aaron," Stella said when he sat back, making Allison genuinely laugh.

"What do you mean, it's from the 94," he argued, not really offended.

"I know, I was 4 years old," she mocked him.

Most of those vinyls were Stella's actually, so whatever he chose was fine for her, even when her favorite ones were in California, she just wanted to calm the waters between the two.

It was incredible how both could act as if nothing had happened between them, as if their tongues had never been inside each other's mouths.

As the handmade noodles cooked, Allison excused herself for a quick bathroom break, "Look out the sauce for me babe," she asked Aaron.

_ Fuck. _

He walked to the stove anyways, stirring the sauce. Stella walked up to him, standing next to him as she ran her hand through his back making him react in a mean way, "Don't," he snapped, but he was already pushing his body against her grabbing her face fiercely, one centimeter away from her mouth looking at her evil eyes. Stella, tempted to kiss him, teased his top lip with the tip of her tongue soft and slow, letting out an involuntary sound from the back of her throat, before they heard Allison's heels closer.

They both let go of the other quickly, Stella pretending she was looking for something inside the fridge, hiding her smile.

During dinner, Stella barely touched her food while Allison talked about one of her most recent surgeries, talking about internal organs and blood and other hospital things. Aaron only listened unbothered by the topic. He's eaten while talking about worse things, like chopped body parts and cold-blooded murders. But he was trying hard not to react to Stella's touch as their legs subtly rubbed under the table.

They were about to start dessert when Stella's mom got paged, and had to leave before Stella could put a piece of brownie on her plate, promising that she would be back as soon as possible, like always.

"Please wait until I come back, we need to talk," Allison murmured to Aaron before leaving. It was probably because of the way he's been acting lately, but he didn't bother to think much about it, his mind was in some other place, on the person in front of him.

This was bad. Stella and Aaron were alone, once again. And they both knew what was coming.

Stella decided not to make any move on him yet. She wanted to compliment his cooking skills instead because the brownie was perfectly cooked, soft and moist with some melted chunks of chocolate that balanced with the vanilla ice cream nicely. But she couldn't.

"I'll do the dishes," Aaron said while picking up the table, still unable to look at her straight in the face, scared of his own impulses now that they were  _ unsupervised _ .

She didn't bother to argue and helped him dry and store the dishes, still in silence. But her mind was loud.

The sexual tension between them was monumental.

She watched every move he made. He looked so attractive, more than usual, with the sleeves rolled up so they wouldn't get wet.

Aaron noticed how nice Stella looked too, wearing a tight black velvet dress and admiring the tattoos on her skin which stood out beautifully. Especially the one that started in her chest and hid inside her dress, and the one that had him distracted during dinner, glancing every once in a while as her and Allison gossiped about some doctor at the hospital that had an affair with a nurse, who was married to another doctor, or something like that. He didn't pay attention since his focus was on trying not to make any suspicious eye contact with Stella.

Stella watched Aaron shut the water off, getting closer to his body once again. She walked one big step and stood behind him, hugging him tight as she ran her hands through his torso.

He became tense, reacting to her touch.

"What are you doing," Aaron murmured, closing his eyes trying to control himself.

"Nothing."

He grabbed her hands and enjoyed her touch for a few seconds, caressing her cold hands that were tiny compared to his and bringing one to his lips, kissing the back of it gently as she leaned her head against the back of his shoulder, breathing in his soft perfume.

He then turned around to face her, touching the side of her arm with his still wet hand, making her shiver.

They stayed quiet, looking at each other's mouths. There was no need for words. Both were having the same thoughts and they knew it.

She grabbed him by the waist over his shirt groping him, feeling his soft muscles.

Aaron mirrored her movements, gripping her body over the soft fabric with one hand as the other went up to her face, running his thumb from her cheek to her lips, parting them open. Stella stuck her tongue out so slightly touching his fingertip, giving him permission to go deeper. She played with his finger surrounding it with her lips, the lips Aaron had been mooning about every day for the past two weeks, making a dangerous eye contact.

His bulge was rock hard in a second.

He turned her against the counter, lifting her like a feather by her thighs and standing between her legs.

Only their heavy breathings filled the room.

Stella spread her legs open more, pushing him onto her by wrapping her legs around his waist. Aaron rested both hands on the counter on each side as he used the tip of his nose to trace random lines on her cheeks, avoiding her lips. It was like he was trying to write something with his nose, going from one cheek to the other, so tempted to kiss her. She needed him to. She needed to feel his lips again.

"What have you done to me, Stella," he said with his eyes closed, making his voice so soft that it was like honey to Stella's ears.

She didn't have an answer to that.

He fiercely captured her freshly cut hair from the back of her head, making her gasp as a smile formed in her face. "I can't get you off my head," he confessed in the same tone.

Stella tilted her head to the side giving Aaron full access to her long neck, which was surrounded by a choker that matched her dress perfectly.

Aaron kissed her skin starting under her jaw, beneath her ear, down from her neck to the collarbone, wetting his lips between the soft kisses. His hardly noticeable three day beard tickled her neck, making her quiver under the sensation, letting out a soft whine.

He then came back up, decided to meet her lips with his, "You just keep growing inside me like wildfire," he said, looking into her shining eyes only one breath away from her mouth. He sounded almost angry now, but he meant it in the most loving way.

Stella brought one hand to his forearm, looking right back at him into his soul. She opened her mouth as Aaron tilted his face to one side and teased her lips with his tongue just like she did earlier, before going in for the most violent and desired kiss he's given.

He's never wanted anything so bad, or anyone this much.

The urge inside his body to be closer to her, even when it was physically almost impossible, was desperate. There was only one thing that could make him be even closer, he needed to be inside her. Stella wanted him to, so badly that it physically hurt her between her legs, she tried to push him closer to her in need of friction, making her whine in his mouth.

"Please, fuck me already," she pleaded.

He was so close to doing it.

He slid both hands through her thighs under the dress, lifting it up to her waist and stopping at the sides of her ass, squeezing them so tight as if he wanted to leave his big hands imprinted on her soft skin. He found the thin strap of her panties, playing with them with his fingers.

Stella's hands were stuck on the back of his head, gripping his hair tight as he pulled her panties down, letting them fall to the tile kitchen floor.

She leaned back breaking the kiss and spread her legs for Aaron. He looked down and traced a long line from down up with two fingers, immediately feeling how wet she was, making her lick her lips reacting to his gentle touch.

"Fuck Stella," he groaned. She was ready for him even before they were alone.

He undid his belt so fast to unbutton his pants pulling them down to his knees. She teased the underwear waistband then moved her hand to his prominent bulge through the fabric, taking his dick out without hesitation, admiring how hard he was with a smirk on her face while giving the firsts soft strokes. She leaned to the wall behind her once again as Aaron guided his dick with his dominant hand to her wet spot, almost entering, then pulling away to tease her.

And then he did it again, four more times, moving his cock up and down in between spreading her wetness all over, using his tip to stimulate her clit.

"Aaron please," Stella begged again. But he kept teasing her looking at her face expressions.

He finally entered with one slow deep thrust that made Stella gasp heavily as he filled her pussy perfectly, looking directly into his dark eyes, then down where their bodies met, delighted by the view, seeing and feeling him entirely inside her.

Aaron grabbed her face pulling her closer and kissed her violently, "You feel so fucking good," he growled in her mouth, intensifying his thrusts.

It's been a long time since he last had unprotected sex and the feeling on his bare skin touching Stella's pussy was extraordinary. She was so wet for him, so tight around his dick.

Stella broke the kiss and started to unbutton his shirt as he kept digging himself into her. She needed to see more of his body, rubbing her hands through his torso feeling the smallest amount of sweat on her palm.

Aaron did the same and pulled the straps of her dress down while kissing her shoulder, revealing her small perky breasts that still bounced to the rhythm of his thrust. And to his surprise she had these delicate jewels on her nipples which made him even more turned on as if that was possible, grabbing one breast with his hand and bringing her nipple to his mouth.

Stella loved being played with her nipples, the feeling of his tongue while simultaneously being fucked was her new favorite thing and her soft moans came out as a reflex unable to control them anymore. 

"Hotch," she murmured out of breath as he kept playing with her piercings, "My uh, fuck, my butt is getting numb," she said making him quietly laugh. For some reason he loved it when Stella called him by his work nickname. It sounded way different coming out of her mouth.

He stopped his thrusts standing still, without pulling out. Aaron grabbed her hips and kissed her while she wrapped her arms around his neck adjusting herself on the counter, involuntarily tightening her pussy around his dick, making him grunt in her mouth.

"Please don't do that." It felt way too good for him and he didn't want to finish yet.

"Sorry," she whispered, kissing his lips softly, but she did it again now on purpose, she wanted to hear him groan once more.

He started moving back and forth again, slowly. Hearing Stella moan subtly as she pressed her lips together was so delightful.

God, he loved her moans.

Aaron picked her up and walked two steps to sit on a chair by the kitchen island, letting Stella adjust however she wanted.

She grabbed his dick to put it inside her once again. As she moved her hips in circular motions, he pulled the top of her dress down even more leaving the fabric only around her waist and started playing with her breasts again, hugging her tight by the waist while he moved his tongue from one nipple to the other, catching her piercings with his teeth.

Stella kept moving at her own pace, feeling Aarons dick reach her spot just right. Maintaining her rhythm she felt the orgasm building up. Her breathing became heavier as she tightened around him and moaned in his ear.

Aaron was close too.

Waiting for her to slow down, he lifted her once again and sat her on the island counter, thrusting hard until he came too, letting a big grunt out as he emptied himself inside Stella, giving a couple more slow thrust while he kissed her lips. Both gasping for hair. Breathing irregularly.

"Stella, you make me crazy."


	8. The envelope

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> That night at the kitchen, someone else was watching them.

Aaron cheated on his girlfriend with her own daughter. How awful and  _ exciting _ .

Minutes before Stella hopped on the plane back to California, Allison hugged her so tight, telling her how proud she was. Her mom has never said those words before. And Stella felt so guilty when her mother also said:  _ "I know I don't tell you this often but I love you so much" _ .

_ What have I done _ she kept repeating to herself on the plane.

She fucked her mom's boyfriend and didn't say anything to her. She hugged her back, how cynical and what a horrible thing to do.

But Stella couldn't stop relieving the night before, and her stomach tickled every time. She had real feelings for Aaron and although what she did to her mother was terrible, she didn't regret it. Not one bit. 

In Aaron's case, he didn't talk to Allison the entire day after his encounter with Stella, responding to her messages in monosyllabic words and making the only phone call 30 seconds long. He was ashamed.

That night in the kitchen neither said a word to each other and stayed quiet while they both adjusted their clothes back on, but their eyes said it all.

It was their secret.

After they did it for the second time in the living room and a third time in Stella's room, she stayed there, locking her door hiding while Aaron cleaned every kitchen counter surface with some wipes he found under the sink, like he was getting rid of the evidence.

As he cleaned he doubted whether to stay and pretend that nothing happened, or make an excuse and leave before Allison came back. 

What Aaron had with Stella was the best and most exhilarating sex he's ever had. And he couldn't get the woman he fucked three times in one night out of his head. Her inked body, her beautiful moans, her eyes, her exquisite lips. Everything about Stella made him lose it.

He came to the realization he wasn't ready to face Allison so he left that night like the coward he was, texting her  _ "I got called too, we have a case, I'm sorry" _ , which was a lie in the beginning but ended up actually happening.

"What's up with you, you've been distracted," Rossi asked while they were on the jet on their way back from the case, two days later.

Aaron had zoned out thinking about her.

"Uh, nothing," he responded, standing up to go to the bathroom, subtly adjusting his pants that were a little too tight on his crotch area.

He couldn't even look at his reflection. He felt embarrassed, and even when it was a mutual decision, he felt like he took advantage of her. But he hadn't stopped thinking about her. 

When the team arrived at the BAU, Aaron went straight to his office just to grab his laptop and a few files. But something else caught his attention. There was a big red envelope on his desk with the note: To Aaron Hotchner. He sat in his chair and unwrapped the string around the button that was extremely tight.

Taking out everything from it, he saw at least fifteen pictures of him and Stella, from the night in the kitchen and from the weekend at the lake cabin. 

He swallowed nervously as his heart rate increased.

_ What the hell. _

He got up to look around outside his office and then closed the door and blinds. He was screwed.

He checked the pictures one by one. Some of them were taken very close. Whoever took them had a professional camera and clearly has been stalking them.

The photos didn't have any message written on them but he found a letter at the end of the envelope.

_ "Dear Aaron, _

_ I thought you were better than this. You disappointed me and for that I am compelled to punish you. If you don't confess to Allison what you did to her, there will be blood spilled. And it's not going to be yours. You have until Wednesday to tell her. That's all I want, for you to be single. You were almost mine, love, but that whore appeared and ruined everything. _

_ I will know if you confess or not, do not even try to fool me. Or I will send these pictures and more, to your soon to be ex girlfriend. _

_ Remember, Wednesday 16th". _

As he read the letter, his mind got full of people who could or couldn't have sent it.

It was Friday 11th, meaning he had five days to come up with a plan.

Aaron had a stalker. And this crazy person made a clear threat. Someone will get hurt, whether it's physically or psychologically. The only thing he had to do was tell Allison about what had happened, which he was going to do eventually, just not confess the entire truth.

_ How will this person know if I tell her though? _ He thought, checking everything in his office, looking for cameras and microphones. Nothing. They could have tapped his phone, so he got the backup one he had sealed in his office drawer, writing down in a paper the important contacts before he crushed his old phone with his foot, crushing it until it turned into dust. He felt sick.

He went to pour a glass of scotch and drank it in one sip, then poured another one. He had to let Stella know that she was in danger. He called her two times but she didn't pick up, then texted from the new phone,  _ 'This is Aaron, call me ASAP' _ .

Aaron finished his drink and put everything in his briefcase. Even when he drank alcohol he still drove back home that night. He thought about telling Rossi about it, he was in a complicated situation and wasn't sure if the right thing was to take care of it on his own.

Sleeping that night wasn't an option. He prepared a pot of coffee and installed it on his desk, studying the letter over and over. The black ink was marked strongly on the plain paper, some words were more marked like  _ 'whore' _ and  _ 'blood',  _ almost ripping through the paper, clearly written by an angry person. There was no way to say if it was a male or female, just someone who was obsessed with him since the person called him  _ 'love' _ . It could be anyone.

_ Why Wednesday 16th, why that specific date?  _ He kept wondering, trying to think of what was next Wednesday. He hasn't even planned that day yet. Then went back to every Wednesday of the past two years, and every 16th of every month. Nothing. His head was empty.

He will definitely have to tell someone.

The next morning he got to work earlier than usual, ready to investigate his own case. Stella didn't call him back until ten a.m.

They hadn't talked since that night, and speaking through the phone felt a little awkward for the both of them, but Stella missed his voice and Aaron was so worried about her.

"What happened, why the new number," she asked nervously.

Aaron sighed deep, glad to hear her voice. "I'm being extorted by someone, a stalker and you might be in danger. I got an envelope full of pictures of us, of our night and the cabin."

Stella's heart dropped to her stomach. She thought about the night in the cabin, when she saw those pairs of eyes creepin through the bushes. It was real, it was someone and not something.

Aaron told her about everything he was going to do to solve the situation and that he had already sent someone to her apartment to look after her, insisting that she shouldn't go to classes and stay inside until he said so.

"Aaron, are we gonna talk about it?", Stella hesitated, not wanting to sound too needy. She wasn't sure what that night meant to him, even when for her was everything.

"I do want to talk about it, believe me, but right now it's not the time. We should only worry about being safe and careful. So please do everything I say, I'll be texting you constantly," he demanded in a soft voice. 

After hanging the call, Aaron was still unsure about whether telling the entire team or not, so he started with David first, telling him everything. 

"I think we should take care of it, you and I, and Garcia. If you want to keep your privacy of course. We can handle it," Rossi advised, Aaron immediately calling Penelope to his office. She swore she was going to get reprimanded for playing that online game she promised she wasn't.

"I need you to be discreet about this, which I know it's hard for you," Aaron said after he explained his situation.

"Yes sir absolutely, but what exactly am I supposed to do?"

"I need you to investigate me, look for every 16th of every month, of my entire life. And focus on the ones that landed on a Wednesday." Aaron didn't have anything to hide. At least until now.

Later the three of them made sure none of his equipment in his office was being intervened.

"So how the hell will she know when you confess," Rossi wondered, still looking around the room.

"I don't know," Aaron said, holding his temples, he already had a headache.

"When are you gonna tell Allison anyway."

"I wanted to do it today, but if I tell her that I cheated with Stella..." he sighed deep, "She could lose her mom forever."

He truly was more worried about Stella than Allison and didn't even realize it.

During the day Aaron texted Stella checking on her as he promised, discussing if she was okay with telling her mother about what had happened.

_ "What if she takes it terribly wrong and hates me for the rest of my life." _

_ "I don't think she would, she might resent you for a while but I'm not that important to her, not more than you." _

_ "You think she'll understand?" _

_ "I don't know to be honest." _

_ "What will happen to us?" _

That last question was something Aaron hadn't thought about. What is a one time thing only? He didn't want it to be, but he wasn't sure about anything at that moment. 

_ "Let's focus on staying safe while I deal with this first." _

After not getting a response, Aaron went to check on Penelope.

"Have you found anything?" He asked, scooting a chair closer to her. 

"Yes sir, I was about to find you," Garcia said while typing fast on her keyboard "So I went through everything, every document signed, every article, every report since you were born, mom, dad, Haley, everyone I checked everyone, including your son. The only thing I found that matched the date you gave me was that last year on January 16th that landed on a Wednesday, your son Jack won a science contest, do you remember that?"

"Yes I remember, he was the youngest contestant."

"That is correct. And I don't think you know this but it made it to the local newspaper and your face was in it. A picture of you, Jack and his science teacher. Does the name Rose Miranda ring a bell?"

And just by hearing that name everything made sense, finally putting the pieces together in his head. He remembered the day he asked Stella to look after his son and went to pick him up at school. Rose was the one Aaron let know that a young woman was going to pick up Jack.

His son's teacher was his stalker.

**...**

Rose is a broken woman. And delusional. In her head she was about to form a family with Aaron and Jack, who reminded her of her own deceased son. Timothy passed away of a brain tumor at the age of six and since then Rose wasn't the same. The sweet science teacher that was real once disappeared forever and the one that Aaron met was the delusional.

The first time Rose saw Aaron was at a parent-teacher meeting. She noticed how he referred to Haley as Jack's mom only, noticing he didn't wear a wedding ring. Then the day Jack won the contest she became obsessed, seeing the picture of the three of them in the newspaper made her think that they were a happy family. So she started to stalk Aaron. She would follow him home, to his early morning runs, wait for him to arrive from a case until 3 a.m. sometimes. Her life started to revolve around him only.

She was in love.

Until the day Stella went to pick Jack at school. Her blood was boiling. She was so much younger and prettier than her. She was a bigger threat than Allison. And when Rose followed them to the cabin she thought  _ 'he cheated on us', _ as if her and Allison were one. She even self harmed once on purpose to be treated by her, visiting the hospital she worked at, but the injure wasn't that severe so she ended up being treated by an intern.

And seeing Aaron make love to Stella was the last straw.

Rose has seen him have sex with Allison, taking pictures too, but that night in the kitchen Aaron was a different person. She's never seen him act like that with his actual girlfriend. She could see the desire on Aaron's face and body. He wanted Stella more than he'd ever wanted Allison.

So she had to do something. Take justice into her hands, for herself and Allison.


	9. Liar

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rose was more dangerous than what Aaron Hotchner thought.

As soon as Aaron knew the stalker was Jack's teacher, he asked Penelope to check every address under the name of Rose Miranda. She only had one property, an apartment twenty minutes away. He dangerously went to check it on his own to confront her, but no one was there. She was smart, of course she had already found another place to hide.

Three days passed by, dodging the issue like a wimp, struggling with how he was going to tell Allison about his affair, and barely got any sleep so those three days felt more like a single one. 

And each day he got a new picture sent to his apartment, inside the same kind of envelopes that looked handmade. But these photos were more explicit than the others, showing his entire... masculinity. 

He felt so vulnerable. A moment that was supposed to be intimate was registered by someone else and will be out there forever probably since he didn't know if Rose shared those files with other people. 

Aaron had only one day left, so he couldn't avoid it anymore. But before calling Allison he called Haley, like he did for the past three days to make sure Jack wasn't going to school. He didn't tell his ex wife the real reason, just that there was a dangerous person at school but if he warned anyone at the establishment, it could cause mass panic. Which was a speculation.

Then it was Allison's turn. He asked her to come to his office with the classic  _ 'we need to talk'  _ text.

Two hours later she was there, sitting on the other side of his desk in front of him, holding her purse tight.

"So are you gonna tell me what's going on with you? Did I do something to upset you?" She has been feeling down those past few days, being ignored by him and her daughter.

"No, you didn't do anything. I did." Aaron took a deep breath before opening his mouth again. "I cheated on you."

Allison's face was expressionless, but she blinked a hundred times.

"I cheated on you too," she blurted out. Aaron did not expect that answer, but somehow it made him feel relieved.

"What? When?" He asked, just out of curiosity, to know if it happened before or after he cheated.

"Like a week ago. Well it doesn't matter. We're even now so, that's it?" Aaron was so afraid to tell her the entire truth. There was no way the stalker could know. So he didn't.

"Yes."

"Well, thanks for letting me know, I guess. I have to go, my shift starts soon."

That went way better than Aaron expected, but not even fifteen minutes later he got a text from an unknown number.

_ "I told you I was going to know if you told her the truth or not." _

Along with a picture of Jack sitting in the backseat of a car he didn't recognize, holding his favorite teddy bear.

His heart missed a beat, feeling his entire body sweat cold as his vision became blurry.

This was not really happening. He fucked up. He should've done more to find Rose earlier, but he truly didn't think she was a dangerous person.

Aaron had to call Haley, looking for her name on his phone desperately. "Is Jack with you."

"Hello to you too."

"Haley I'm being serious," he snapped.

"Jeez, yes he's with me. I mean he's in his room, why?"

"Go check on him now," he ordered, already getting ready to go to her house.

Haley felt something was off on her ex husband's voice and did as he said, walking upstairs, "Jack?"

"Is he there with you? Haley?" But she didn't respond right away.

"Oh god he's not here, what's going on?" Her voice was shaking, Aaron could hear her panicking.

"Check everywhere, downstairs, the backyard."

"He's not here Aaron."

"I'll be right there. Don't touch anything."

And as soon as he hung up, he gathered the team on the conference room, quickly updating them with his own case. 

"Morgan and Rossi, you're coming with me. Prentiss, JJ and Reid go to Rose's apartment, see if there is anything that can lead us to where she might have Jack, because I know he won't be there," Aaron ordered everyone.

Ten minutes later Aaron was at his ex wife's house, the one he lived in once.

She hugged him tight, crumbling into his arms, but she didn't know that it was all Aaron's fault.

"What's going on Aaron?" Haley asked, wiping her tears with tissue. Morgan and Rossi looked at each other.

"Hotch has a stalker, and when she heard that Aaron didn't do what she asked for, she took Jack," David explained.

"She? Who is she?"

"Jack's science teacher," Derek replied.

"What? Miss Rose?"

"Yes, that's probably why you didn't hear her take Jack. He knew her so he didn't question anything and followed her," Rossi added.

Aaron had gone directly into his son's room. Everything seemed in order, although the window was open and there were two small stones on the floor, but there was no way he went down the window. So he went to check the back door downstairs that was slightly open.

_ "Rose must've caught Jack's attention throwing stones in his room and that made him peek through the window. He saw his science teacher making signs for him to come down in silence, and he did, coming out through the back door." _

**...**

Meanwhile in Rose's apartment, JJ, Emily and Reid were tearing the place down completely, finding more photos of Aaron everywhere in her room. Neither of them was ready to see SSA Aaron Hotchner half naked, screwing a twenty year old.

"Oh my god, why is it so big," Emily exclaimed, going through the pictures. JJ was as shook as her.

"Is that Stella?" Reid asked, kind of disappointed. He really thought he had a chance with the red head.

"Yeah, but did you see how big his..."

"Yeah. I'm gonna be scarred for life," Spencer grumbled, making both girls laugh.

"So this is what it's about, Aaron cheated?" JJ questioned, looking at Emily confused.

"Apparently. But why didn't he tell us, he knew we would've found out anyway."

"He's probably embarrassed, I mean his son is in danger because of a fling."

"Yeah but he didn't know he had a stalker," Emily added, defending her boss somehow.

"Well he could've done somewhere private," Spencer said while checking Rose's computer, which had even more pictures.

"What more private than inside a house. Besides when you're horny you just do it no matter the place. And the bedroom is overrated. I've done it at a mall's restroom," Emily confessed. "You, JJ?"

"Bar restroom," she responded, fist-bumping each other, "but I have to say, I think the bedroom is underrated."

"Why in the toilet, it's full of germs," Reid questioned with a disgusted face.

"What about you Spence," JJ mocked him.

"I'm done here," he said walking away to the living room with the laptop as he heard them laugh at him again, getting a call from Garcia seconds later.

"Reid, I'm pretty sure she's live streaming," she quickly talked.

"What do you mean."

"I'm seeing her, right now. Jack seems fine, but there is a girl tied in a chair and she looks just like Stella, my sweet Stella, the girl I've only seen once but that I love oh god if something happens to her I-" Penelope said with a nervous shaking voice while sharing her screen with Spencer.

The girl in the chair was clearly Stella, and Jack was cleaning her face with a wet cloth.

Aaron arrived at Rose's apartment, along with Derek and Rossi, after leaving Haley with police officers looking after her and in case Rose decided to bring Jack back.

His female coworkers tried so hard not to smile at each other when they saw him, but they got caught.

"I apologize if you saw those pictures," Aaron said to the both of them while blushing but maintaining his straight face.

"What pictures, we didn't see any," Emily lied.

Spencer soon caught everyone's attention, gathering them at the living room. "Hotch, Rose is live streaming and it seems like she kidnapped Stella."

"What? That's not possible, she's in California."

She was, five hours ago.

Aaron took a good look at the screen and it really was her, which meant that the person who responded to his message moments earlier wasn't really her.

Then his phone started to ring. "Hello?"

"Hello Aaron. I told you something bad was going to happen and you didn't listen."

"Is jack okay?" He almost begged.

"He's more than okay, right Jack? Say hi to daddy." It sounded like she was mocking him.

"Hi daddy," Aaron let out a sigh of relief as he saw his son through the screen, waving.

"Now, you're going to call Allison and tell her the truth! Or your whore is gonna get hurt badly, so bad that her own mother will have to operate on her, if she makes it of course."

He could hear Stella whimpering in the background, and the image on the laptop showed Jack comforting her.

"Go on, I will be listening, do it now!"

Aaron hung up and called Allison, but she didn't pick up. He then tried three more times at the same time the screen showed a countdown. 

He had two hours.

In desperation, Aaron vanished from the apartment without letting anyone know where he was going. He drove above the speed limit to the hospital where Allison worked, asking for her at the ER front desk. It was the only way he could confess the entire truth before the time was up.

"She's in surgery," a nurse said, then pulling out his credential demanded that he should see her, that it was life or death. Literally.

The nurse guided him to an OR gallery, seeing Allison with her hands inside a man bowels. He had to talk through the intercom.

"Allison," Aaron said while pressing the button. She looked up at him and he could see her confusion even behind her mask and surgical glasses.

"What the hell," Allison mouthed when she realized it was him.

"I wasn't completely honest earlier." Now everyone in that OR had his attention. She was going to be embarrassed forever. But he had to do it. "I cheated, yes. But I left out the part that it was with your daughter. I cheated on you with Stella."

People around Allison gasped in sync, all looking at each other covering their mouths over the masks. This was not happening to her. It sounded like a terrible joke.

The patient's monitor started beeping.

"We'll talk about it later, Aaron," she stated, focusing her attention back to the wide open man.

Aaron stepped out of the gallery, and immediately laid both hands flat on the wall to pull himself together.

How did he let this get too far.

Then the buzzing of his phone snapped him out of his thoughts. "Now what."

"Good job, Aaron. How does it feel, being honest for once, huh?"

"Tell me where they are." He felt like he could punch anyone who stood in front of him, making his hand into a fist

"Your son is on his way to you already. But Stella, I think I want to keep her longer."

Everyone at the apartment could see how Rose had a knife teasing Stella's neck. And heard when Jack was taken by another person moments earlier.

Aaron rushed to his car, finding his son standing in the middle of the ER.

"Daddy!" Jack yelled, hugging him as his dad picked him up. He was perfectly fine.

"Are you alright?" His kid nodded as he hugged him tight. "Jack who dropped you here?"

"Miss Rose's friend."

Aaron walked to the front desk once again. "Excuse me did you see who left this kid here?"

"Some guy, he said an FBI agent was supposed to get him and walked away before I even said anything," the nurse explained.

"What did he look like."

"White, 6'2 maybe, skinny and had a beard."

After calling the police and a sketch artist, Aaron dropped Jack off at Haley's. Then drove back to Rose's apartment.

"Hotch, Garcia may have found where Stella is being held," Spencer let him know as soon as he walked in. "she had an uncle who owned a car repair shop that no longer operates."

And before Reid said anything else, Aaron's phone rang once again.

"Are you ready for the last thing? This should be easy."

"Yes." He knew that half of his team were already on their way to stop her so he didn't feel as desperate as before.

"But first, tell your agents that they won't find me there. I thought they were better at their job. Anyway, what I want you to do is tell Stella, who is right next to me listening, tell her how you really feel about her. Tell her how you took advantage of her and that she means nothing to you, that she's a filthy little whore that would never be as good as her mother."

Aaron was holding his phone so hard as he saw Stella through the screen, she seemed so scared. 

"Rose, you want me to say the truth right?"

"Of course, silly. Go on, tell her."

"Alright, is she listening?"

"Yes I told you, hurry up," she said as she played with the knife around Stella's face that was all sweaty, and she couldn't even say anything since her mouth had a piece of fabric.

"Stella, she's right. I ... I took advantage of you. I only had sex with you because," he really wasn't sure what to say, "because I'm a man and I'm not made of stone, you kept provoking me. That's it, I used you."

He wasn't sure if Stella assumed that what he said was real, he hoped she wouldn't because it wasn't true. He only said what Rose wanted to hear.

But she didn't believe him.

"Liar," Rose growled before hanging up.

Spencer, JJ and Aaron saw how Rose got a gun from inside her shirt, shooting Stella twice, as the team abruptly entered, shooting her right before she could shoot Stella one more time.

"Get the medics now!" Emily screamed, rushing to Stella and applying pressure on her chest wounds as Morgan untied her. "We got you, you're okay, you're gonna be fine, just stay with me, okay?"

Stella gave her a bloody smile. "Okay," she murmured as the blood dripped out of her mouth.

Aaron was witnessing everything through the screen in shock, holding his head with both hands as his eyes filled with tears, wishing he could've done something else to avoid this.

_ She can't die. This is my fault. _

Emily rode the ambulance with Stella, holding her hand while the medics assisted her.

"You're going to be fine Stella, just keep your eyes open for me, alright?" She weakly nodded, but her eyes shut close involuntarily as the monitor started beeping.

"We're losing her!"


	10. Fake goodbye

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Allison, Stella and Aaron discuss about what happened, Stella looses her mom forever.

Aaron arrived at the hospital right on time, seeing Stella covered in blood being rushed to the OR.

"GSW to the chest and shoulder, no exit wounds. She needs three units of O neg stat! She's lost a lot of blood already!" The doctor on top of her yelled, updating another while she performed CPR on Stella.

This was all his fault. All of his surroundings appeared blurry and he couldn't hear anything except for his own heartbeat in his ears.

"She's a strong woman, Hotch," Emily comforted him as they sat in the waiting room, but her voice sounded far, only seeing her lips move and how she had blood in her hands. Stella's blood. 

"Does Allison work here?" Aaron nodded. "Okay, I'll be the one telling her, because she's going to hate you." Emily was being sincere.

Half an hour later Allison was out of her surgery.

"There is an FBI agent waiting for you outside," a nurse let Allison know while she scrubbed out.  _ Aaron _ , she thought, feeling her blood boiling.

"Hi Allison, I'm Emily Prentiss, I don't know if you remember me, I work with Hotch, with Aaron."

"What is it, did he send you to confront me?" She said while taking her cap off and walking to the lounge room.

"No, there is something I need to tell you." Emily walked next to her until they arrived at the doctor's room. "why don't you sit?"

"Why", Allison asked, now taking her shoes off but refusing to sit.

"Alright, there is no soft way to tell you this so I'll just say it. Stella is in surgery right now, she was hurt, badly."

Her face stayed expressionless, "I'm sorry, what?" That was all she said before involuntarily falling to the couch.

Emily explained everything to her, every single detail. Allison couldn't believe it. She almost laughed while Emily talked, but it just sounded unreal. How does her daughter become a target to be kidnapped. And all she felt at that moment was rage, towards Aaron Hotchner.

"I'm gonna kill that son of a bitch!" She growled before literally sprinting to the waiting room, confronting Aaron as soon as she saw him. She didn't even put her shoes back on.

"What did you do to my daughter!" She screamed at Aaron's face, hitting his chest in a fist as he stood up. And he let her. Allison had every right to be mad at him. He was mad at himself, wishing he could hit himself too.

Allison didn't wait for an answer and commanded the nurse to tell her where her daughter was.

"OR 4."

She ran fast, ready to scrub in, but one of her colleagues and friend of hers didn't let her.

"They're already working on her, let them finish. Look at you, you're not thinking straight," he said pointing at her shoeless feet.

Seeing her own daughter laying on an OR gurney with her chest open, and not being able to do something for her felt like a nightmare. But her friend was right. She needed to let the other surgeons take care of her and decided to wait in the gallery, watching how her colleague got the bullets out of her chest, suctioning the blood and how she almost coded twice.

Three hours passed until the doctors were able to stabilize Stella, closing her up and sending her to the ICU for observation.

Allison stayed next to her that night until her daughter finally opened her eyes.

Stella slowly opened her eyes and looked around the room, feeling her throat sore and seeing her mom sitting next to her. Her eyes seemed watery.

"Are you crying?" Was the first thing that came out of her very dry mouth, making Allison smile of relief.

"Oh god." Her mother covered her own mouth, while stroking her daughter's red messy hair.

Stella had flashbacks about everything that happened to her. The man who kidnapped her in her apartment in California, hoping he didn't do anything to Misty. Getting drugged, then waking up tied up in the car shop, seeing Jack there too, taking care of her.

And the gunshots, bringing one hand to her sensitive chest.

"Is Aaron here?" she asked Allison, who frowned her brows just by hearing his name.

"You're not seeing him, Stella. He's the only reason you are here." She was so pissed at that man.

"Mom please," her daughter begged.

But she couldn't say no to her being in that condition. "Fine, but we will eventually talk about what happened." It sounded like a threat, now that her daughter was out of the woods, she started to feel the rage towards her too.

Allison's been the other woman before, multiple times, but she never expected karma would make her own daughter be the person she'd be cheated on with.

"Agent Hotchner?" He lifted his head as the nurse called his name.

"Yes."

"Stella Broste is asking for you." Those words made the heavyweight he had on his chest for hours disappear.

_ She made it. She was alive. _

"Thank you."

The nurse guided him to a room, seeing Stella's pale face with heavy under-eye bags. He took a deep breath before stepping in.

"Hi," Stella greeted with a sweet smile that made Aaron feel emotional.

"Hey."

He walked up to her, taking her hand into his and kissing the back of it.

"I'm so sorry, Stella."

"Don't."

"What I said, I didn't mean it. I didn't take advantage of you, I didn't use you. That night I felt so many things. And I'm so glad that you... that you are here because I wouldn't forgive myself. Ever." Her cheeks turned bright red, bringing the life back to her face. "And I don't know what will happen to us to be honest, I've never been in this situation before."

"Yeah me neither," she smiled again.

"But I do know that I care about you, so much. And I was so scared today, afraid to lose you."

"Come, lay with me for a while," she said tapping the bed, making him space. That made her twitch her face a little, forgetting that she just had open chest surgery.

"Careful."

Aaron laid next to her until her meds made effect and fell asleep. Kissing her cheek before leaving.

He wasn't ready to confront Allison, but there she was, waiting outside the room.

"Is she sleeping?" She asked angrily.

"Uh, yeah she-"

"Well I'm gonna wake her."

Aaron grabbed her arm, "Hey, calm down, woman. She just had her chest open, let her rest, she's weak."

"What do you know? I'm the doctor here. I checked her chart and she's strong enough," she let go of his touch violently. "And don't you ever 'woman' me."

Stella woke up by the feeling of a hand squeezing her feet.

"We're gonna talk, right now, the three of us," Allison said.

"Mom please don't do this." She barely responded, feeling a knot forming in her throat. She had hurt her own mother and the guilt started to eat her.

"I need to hear it from you Stella. Did you really sleep with him?" Her mother asked while she was standing by the end of the bed with her arms crossed. "I'm waiting."

Aaron only listened, wanting to hold Stella's hand but Allison's eyes on him were like knives.

"Yes, we had sex, the day before I left," she confirmed as her eyes became blurry, but she held in the tears, "It just happened, mom."

"No Stella, that doesn't just happen," Allison snapped. She truly felt disappointed in her daughter.

"You're right," she took a deep breath before opening her mouth again. "I love him, and I've liked him since the day I met him. I tried to push my feelings away because he was your boyfriend but I couldn't," Stella confessed as her cheeks turned red. She's never felt this vulnerable.

"You love him, right," Allison clenched her jaw so hard, "And you,  _ 'Hotch' _ ," she said his nickname in a mocking tone, "you took advantage of her, you knew how she felt about you."

"No. I've had feelings for her too, for a while now," he glanced at Stella, but she was looking at her hands, picking her nails.

"Since when. Did you even want to be with me? No, wait, explain me something, tell me how the fuck did you end up fucking a twenty two year old while dating her mother you sick predator!"

Allison was literally yelling, forgetting she was in a hospital full of patients that were probably listening to her performance.

"Keep it down," Aaron snapped. "First of all I'm not a predator. I understand that the age gap between us is big, but I care about Stella and she's a grown woman," he defended himself, he never expected to be called a predator, "And yes, in the beginning I wanted to be with you, we had a good thing. But at some point, I was more excited to see Stella than you, and that kept me from ending the relationship."

"So you used me. To get closer to her." Allison was pissed to the point where smoke was coming out of her ears, but only Stella was able to see that.

"Yes, I used you but not, on purpose," he faltered, "I'm sorry Allison. I never meant for any of this to happen."

"Right," Allison could barely look at his face anymore. She wanted to punch him in the throat. For using her.  _ What was the point, _ she thought. Why not just be honest from the beginning. "You're leaving now. And you will never see her again."

"Since when are you so protective over me, Allison. You don't get to decide that," Stella barked. There was no way this was the last time she'd see Aaron.

Allison wide opened her eyes in shock for the way Stella talked back at her, but she was right, she's never been overprotective, "Then you will never see  _ me _ again. You're on your own now, Stella," her mother said before walking out the room.

Stella covered her eyes with her hand, trying to hold back her tears again. That was it. She lost her mother forever.

"Hey, I'm gonna fix this okay. I'll let you know how it goes," Aaron assured before running behind his ex girlfriend.

"Allison, wait," he yelled.

She stopped, took a deep breath, turned around and waited for him to get to her, and when he was three feet away from her, she jumped and punched him in the face, risking it all. She was lucky that not a lot of people saw that, but the gossip inside a hospital spread like a virus so everyone would know eventually.

"Okay, I deserved that," Aaron said, wiping the little bit of blood off his nose. It was a good punch, but he had received worse.

Somehow Aaron convinced Allison to talk again, that punch helped her release some anger. He told her that he was already out of Stella's life, which was a lie. But he couldn't live with the guilt of breaking a family of two. They needed each other, so he  _ -fake- _ stepped aside.

Soon after that talk, he texted Stella, letting her know that it was just to distract Allison and that she just had to play along, but that they still had to talk.

On Allison's side, she came to the decision that Stella was in fact on her own, economically wise at least since that was all she gave her. She told her to find a new apartment and that she won't pay her last year of school. Which was fine for Stella, as long as they still were mother and daughter.

But their relationship became colder than ever, and Stella wasn't sure if there was going back from that.

She figured that her mother needed some time alone to think about everything, with a clear head. It's not like they were that close before, but she knew that she would always be there, until now.


	11. FaceTime appointment

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> With Stella in California and Aaron in Virginia, the manage to keep things sexy.

It's been two weeks since Stella was discharged from the hospital. She spent a week at her mom's house recovering before traveling back to California. During those days Aaron texted her every night, although all he wanted to do was hear her voice again but that would've been risky, checking up on her and on how Allison was treating her.

She was colder than usual as expected, but she still took a week off to take care of her daughter. She was mad at Stella, and hurt only by the fact that she lied to her face. If she would've been honest from the beginning, Allison probably would've reacted way differently. They both fooled her, and that was something she couldn't forgive that easily. She was hurt that her daughter literally fucked her back then boyfriend, but she came honest with Stella saying that she wasn't interested in Aaron before he cheated, omitting the part where she cheated before he did, but didn't want to end it because he was a good man, a boring one but he was husband material according to her friends. So she thought to herself, maybe Stella made her a favor because he would've cheated anyway. Which in reality wasn't true. Aaron would've never cheated with any random person. Stella made him feel real things.

Stella was doing much better physically, but she had nightmares almost every night waking up with the pain in her chest. Once she went back to California there was no need to keep hiding so she kept contact with Aaron, calling each other almost daily. He recommended seeing a therapist that he knew who was very professional and treated patients near her new place, but she insisted it was fine.

She also kept track of her wounds healing process, telling him that she had already decided which tattoo designs will cover them. She sent him pictures regularly of the scar in her chest, as an excuse to send other kinds of pictures. Aaron's favorites are the ones she sends from the shower, looking all wet wishing he was there with her. But he enjoyed the videos more.

He once got caught by Emily. They were in the car waiting for a suspect to come out of their house when he got a text from Stella.

It was six p.m. in California and she had just finished taking photos in her room since at that time of the day the golden hour hit her room perfectly, making her skin tone look beautiful and which always made her pictures look artistic, just for Aaron, he deserved quality content only.

She chose her three favorites of that photo shoot, but the one his coworker saw was where Stella was posing in front of a mirror, standing on her knees slightly leaning forward in which the sunlight made her nipple piercings shine perfectly.

"Nice boobs," Emily said, taking off her sunglasses to see more clearly.

"You didn't see that," he snapped, locking his phone, nervously looking out the window.

He did use that same picture that night though, along with the other two, for recreational purposes.

Hotch really thought no one in his team knew that she was still in contact with Stella, and they all decided to let him believe that.

They weren't dating. Neither was sure what they were doing. But both wanted each other so bad, more than ever before. Even when Allison threatened Aaron to put a restraining order against him. Stella was in need of his voice, so she was the one that always called him. He updated her about their 'case' and how Rose was finally in jail for the attempted murder, which sounded surreal on Stella's head thinking about how she almost got killed, but that the man who helped vanished and was nowhere to be found yet. They also talked about Jack, who kept asking about her, Stella's new classes of the semester since she had recently come back, which included one of photography, her favorite so far and the different cases Aaron had worked recently, avoiding harsh details.

"You know that sometimes I wish for a serial killer here in California, just so that you come here and we have an excuse to see each other," Stella said through the phone.

They were facetiming. Aaron had just arrived home from a case. It was almost 2 a.m. in Virginia, Stella was three hours ahead and wasn't in bed yet and resting on her couch.

"I've thought about that too to be honest, but regretted it immediately," Aaron confessed, kind of embarrassed. Stella chuckled through the screen.

"So you miss me."

He could tell she was watching her favorite movie, hearing Hermione's voice in the background but Stella was only paying attention to his smile, at the face she wanted to fill with kisses.

"I do," he admitted while adjusting in bed, putting his free hand behind his head.

"I wish I was there with you, cuddling. Kissing you, touching you," she said, bringing her thumb to her mouth, biting her nail slightly. "Are you alone?" Her voice became softer, and so did his.

"Yeah, why?" He saw her eyes become darker.

"No reason."

Stella then stood up from the couch and went to her fridge to get ice cream. She put the phone on the counter, giving Aaron a view of the top half of her body. She was only wearing a pink crop top with no bra and he could clearly see her piercings through the thin fabric, imagining how good they looked underneath.

He knew exactly what she was doing.

Stella began to eat her ice cream in silence, and Aaron only watched as she brought the spoon to her mouth.

"What flavor is it?" He asked, not really curious. His bulge started growing as he watched her mouth doing a particular motion.

Stella leaned down to the phone camera. "Uh, chocolate fudge brownie," she responded reading the label. "I love brownies."

"I know you do." Aaron remembered that night he brought dessert to dinner, Stella had two pieces and a half.

She then let a piece fall inside her shirt on purpose, but moaning naturally because of the cold feeling on her skin.

"Please don't make those noises," Aaron begged. She only gave him an evil smile.

"I wish you were here to lick me clean, and not just the ice cream."

"Stop."

"Why, I miss you."

Stella walked to her room, closed the door behind her so Misty wouldn't follow her and witness anything sinful for her beautiful green eyes.

"I want to feel your touch again. I've relieved our night over and over, pretending my fingers are yours, but it's not the same." Now she was talking, getting him in the mood. She saw him close his eyes and licking his lips as he sighed deeply but not saying a word, "You're hard already, aren't you." He was, to the point that he had to throw the bed covers back. "Show me."

"I'm not gonna..."

"Let me hear you then. I want to hear you while you finish thinking about me, please." She was already feeling her arousal between her legs.

Aaron has never done this before. Phone sex sounded like something a teenager would do because their parents wouldn't let them see their girlfriend/boyfriend.

But there he was, ready to do it.

"Do you need more? I'm already touching myself, Aaron," she declared. She was almost touching herself though, only through the wet underwear.

"You are perverse." Aaron hesitated for a moment, looking at his hard dick under his pajama pants. He had to do something about it eventually, why not share the moment with Stella. "Take your shirt off first," he demanded.

"Yes sir." She smiled excited and did like he ordered, as he started to stroke his cock, unsure at the beginning but she looked so hot.

He placed his phone against a pillow, using it for support showing only his torso, then he took his shirt off too, got his lotion from the drawer and applied some on his hand, spreading it through his length. But he only let her see from his waist up and half of his arm moving up and down, leaving the rest to her imagination.

"Oh fuck me already," she whined as she saw a smirk appearing in his face while he adjusted his right hand behind his head like before, and using his dominant one to work on himself.

Stella put her phone the exact same way, massaging her clit as she saw Aaron close his eyes and hearing his breathing become heavier.

She slid two fingers at her entrance wetting them, then focusing her movements on her clit again as she played with her nipples with the other hand, pinching and pulling them hard as she liked.

At some point both had their eyes closed, only listening to each other's pleasure sounds, pretending that the other was right there.

Stella's nails were longer than what she usually preferred so she had to get her dildo out of her drawer. She was unsure at the beginning but she knew Aaron wouldn't judge her. It was the complete opposite, as he saw her face while entering the toy he got even more turned on, smiling to himself. She looked delighted. Parting her lips open letting out the sounds he so loved and missed so much.

Few moments later Aaron was already finishing, groaning as he eyaculated on his stomach. Witnessing that scene made Stella flick her clit and move the dildo faster until she came too, squeezing her legs together, squirming on her bed as she moaned.

Aaron saw Stella recompose until she focused back on the screen.

"Let me see your cum," she begged. He pointed the camera to his stomach, spreading some of it with his fingers.

"Fuck," Stella whispered to herself biting her bottom lip. "We have to do this more often, but it's so painful not being able to touch you, feel you," she whined.

Aaron went to his bathroom and wiped himself with a towel.

"It was fun," he said when he got back to bed. He truly enjoyed it, feeling that type of thrill was something different.

"You've never done this before, huh?"

"Have you?"

"Maybe."

Of course she has, he already knew she has.

**...**

The next couple of weeks they kept having their face time reunions, sexting each other even. Stella one day received a text from Aaron while she was in class, it was a black screen three minute video. She got curious as to what it was and subtly put on one earbud on her left ear only, since her teacher was explaining the assignment for the following week, and pressed play. As soon as she heard his heavy breathings deep in her ear her cheeks flushed, hiding a smile with her hand as she rested her elbow on the table. She even had to cross her legs, enjoying the beautiful sounds that came from the back of his throat. She never thought that Aaron would make her horny even while being in class.  _ "Thank you" , s _ he texted after the video finished, after he finished.

All of those things were new to Aaron but he truly enjoyed it and somehow that made him more confident, happy. And his coworkers noticed his positive change.

"So how are things going with Stella," Rossi asked him once, as they had some coffee at the BAU kitchen area.

"I don't know what you mean," Aaron acted unaware, taking a sip from his mug.

"Oh come on Hotch, you know we all know you are still together." He was right, but he didn't feel like admitting it.

"We aren't together, we are just, in contact I guess."

"You should visit her sometime, take one or two days off," his friend suggested.

"I have a son Dave, the little free time I have goes to him now," he excused, trying to convince himself that he was fine with how things were.

"Right. Think about it anyway, your son has a mom too, she can look after him. You know there is a saying that goes: young keeps you young, and you Hotch, look better than ever, even when she's miles away. Imagine if you see her regularly."

Aaron has actually thought about visiting her, multiple times, but he always got self conscious thinking  _ 'maybe it's too much, we aren't a couple after all' _ , but he missed her, so much.

"It's like I became addicted to her, Dave, she's all I think about. I see her everywhere and everything reminds me of her," he confessed in another opportunity. Rossi was the only one he would openly talk about.

"That, my friend, is called love."

He had been in love before, with Haley, but he didn't feel the same way. Maybe it was because he was young back then and their relationship was rose-colored from the beginning. There wasn't that thrill of getting caught and the excitement of an impossible thing. Part of his feelings towards Stella were provoked by that, and by the danger and how she almost dies because of him made him more attached to her. He was in need of her touch.

_ How can someone fall in love in such a short period of time _ , he thought often. He could almost hear Reid's voice in his head:  _ "Technically there isn't a specific period of time that can determine whether you are in love or not since it's not a voluntary process, but the love you think you feel the first four weeks is probably lust due to the physical attraction. However, being in love and falling in love are two different things, but can happen simultaneously. So you may not be in love yet but you could be falling in love". _

**_"Maybe I am falling for her."_ **


	12. "Good, that's good."

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aaron and Stella finally get to see each other again, thanks to a serial killer in LA.

It was like both manifested it into the universe. A serial killer in California, more specifically in Los Angeles.

Aaron felt a bit guilty as Penelope presented the case, but he was smiling on the inside, excited to finally see Stella.

"For the past four days LA has had four murders, all victims were in their late twenties. Three males, one female, all were 27 years old. They each overdosed on different bars and pubs restrooms and each victim had the same drugs in their systems, which were a lot like a cocktail of drugs," Garcia began.

"So we have two coincidences, the age and the types of drugs they consumed," Morgan said.

"And they all were musicians, trying to make music their full time job. Oscar, the second victim, had actually just dropped his first album, I had to buy it," Penelope added, showing a picture on the screen of the pale dead man.

"It says that according to their families, neither consumed that type of drugs, only weed," Emily continued, reading her tablet.

"That is correct," Garcia agreed.

"So we think another person made them overdose? With what purpose?" JJ questioned.

"We'll have to find out, wheels up in ten," Aaron said.

Someone was in a hurry.

He was the first one to get in the jet, texting Stella as soon as he installed on his seat.

_ "We have a case in LA". _

_ "Oh no, I guess I'll have to free my entire schedule for today",  _ Stella responded almost immediately, adding a sad face emoji.

She still was working on the assignments she missed for being almost murdered. Which weren't many. But she couldn't not see Aaron.

"JJ, you and I will interview the victims' families and friends to get more information about their lifestyles. Reid and Morgan go to the last crime scene, see if there were any witnesses and cameras, someone may have crossed paths with our unsub. Prentiss and Rossi will go to the morgue and get the list of all the drugs found in their bodies," Aaron ordered fifteen minutes before landing.

The team had barely anything on the unsub. They assumed that for the wide variety of drugs he used on the victims, he had money or managed a drug business himself. And Reid came with the possibility that the unsub might have a special interest with the '27 club'.

"Should we go hunting?" Morgan suggested that afternoon.

"You mean hope to find the guy in one of the hundreds of bars here in LA?" Emily argued.

"It's better than standing here and waiting for another victim," Derek argued back. "I mean what else can we do."

"We aren't even sure that someone is killing these musicians," Prentiss responded again.

"The signature it's pretty clear in my opinion," JJ added. "Right Hotch?"

Aaron was distracted by his phone, even between interviews with the families. And JJ noticed that but didn't want to bring it up to him.

"I'm sorry, what?" He put his phone away, leaving Stella on read.

"That we should go party tonight," Rossi said.

They called Garcia to know which bars of LA had new artists playing that night.

"I narrowed the search to bars and pubs in the Hollywood area since the four bars were located near each other, the last two only three blocks away from the other. And tonight my friends we have ... four bars open for new artists to perform, I'm sending the addresses right now."

"Alright, thanks Garcia. We'll split in three, two on each bar. And let's hope the unsub chooses one of them," Hotch said. "It could be dangerous for one of us to go alone."

Later that evening Aaron updated Stella about the case, saying he was going to a bar, not by choice.

_ "Can I visit you?"  _ Stella texted. She had been waiting all day which was good for her since when she's excited about something she gets more work done for some reason and advanced a lot in her pending assignments.

He doubted it at first, since he was going for work that night and not to socialize. But ended up sending her the name of the place,  _ 'The bourbon bar' _ and the time he should be there, along with JJ.

The bar was half an hour away from Stella's apartment, very convenient. She started to get ready at 7 p.m. shaving her entire body, putting on the normal amount of makeup which was a combo of eyeliner, mascara and lip balm. She changed her outfit at least three times, going for an all black outfit. She was so anxious and excited to finally see Aaron.

**...**

Stella arrived at The Bourbon earlier than the time Aaron told her. She sat at the bar and asked for a drink, recognizing the bartender.

"I haven't seen you in a while," the asian guy said, smiling at her.

"Noel, holy crap I didn't know you worked here," she responded surprised. She wasn't expecting to see another familiar face that night besides Aaron's.

Noel was more than a familiar face to her, he was her mentor the time she worked at another bar. He also was one of the guys her age she hooked up with, but it only happened once and didn't make their relationship awkward since they were both pretty drunk and didn't remember much so they agreed that nothing happened after they woke up in the same bed.

"What can I get you?" He asked while putting a piece of his long hair behind his ear.

"Surprise me, maybe something sweet," she responded in a serious voice, mocking the people who said that regularly while they worked together.

Noel smiled while pointing at her, "But you are a sweet drink person." He remembered her favorite was the mudslide, which was basically dessert.

"I am," she admitted, "but I'll just have a coconut mojito tonight."

When Aaron and JJ got to the bar they sat by the stage, which had a guitar standing in a tripod. The artist should be up any minute, he thought checking the time on his phone. He was about to text Stella when he saw the back of a red haired woman, it looked like the muscular bartender was flirting with her. He felt rage all of a sudden, texting Stella to meet him by the restrooms.

"I'll be right back," Aaron said to JJ, fixing his tie.

"Watch my drink, I'll be right back," Stella said to Noel, adjusting her jeans on her way to the toilets.

The hallway lights to the restrooms were red, matching perfectly the bar devil-ish aesthetic. She walked to the end and waited for Aaron.

He saw her leaning against the wall with her hands behind her back, looking at him as he walked to her. All he wanted to do was kiss her before even saying hello, but he stopped five feet away from her, putting his hands in his pockets.

The butterflies on Stella's stomach woke up as soon as she saw him walking towards her. "Hi," she said, looking him up and down. He was wearing a black suit and could clearly see his gun that was supposed to be hiding under his jacket but he pushed it back on purpose.

"Hi," Aaron responded, mirroring her eyes movements. It was strange not seeing her tattoos right away, but it was a chilly night for her to dress with less clothes.

"Is it weird that I still get nervous when I'm around you," she said slowly walking up to him, clacking her boots heels on the floor, grabbing his tie like the flirt she was. The height difference between them was almost perfect to kiss his lips without standing on toes. Decided, Stella went for it, but Aaron stopped her.

"Not here," grabbing her wrist and forcing her into the men's room, locking the door behind her. "Here."

He pushed her against the cold tile wall and slipped his tongue inside her mouth, kissing her in the only way he's been wanting to, grabbing her face with both hands and tasting the sweetness of her drink in her soft tongue. She smiled in between the kiss, letting her purse fall to the floor and placed her hands under his jacket around his waist, feeling his cold gun on her forearm. He pressed himself against her core, trapping her in the bathroom corner.

Stella's heart was pounding with excitement and her knees got weaker as the smell of his perfume invaded all her senses feeling her body melting. She knotted her fingers in the back of his hair as he moved one hand to her waist in need for her body, he needed her closer. Stella quickly moved her hands to his belt, ready to unbuckle it but he grabbed her by the wrists.

"I'm on duty," he whispered in her mouth.

"and?" She responded looking into his dark eyes.

"But you're not."

His hands quickly got into her shirt while he kissed her fiercely, untucking it from her jeans and holding her waist hard, Stella letting him do whatever he wanted, putting her arms to her side. He had forgotten how soft her skin was.

He then flipped her over, making her lean her entire core against the wall. He pulled her leather jacket down a bit to her shoulders to get access to her neck, kissing her skin from behind as her sweet perfume got into his lungs. The feeling of Aaron's lips on her neck once again after a while sent shivers throughout Stella's back, and the way his bulge pressed against her ass made her so aroused, she could already feel her underwear getting soaked, and at any time they would be leaking through the fabric, hoping it didn't get to her pants.

Aaron started to unbutton her jeans and pulled them down roughly, crouching behind her admiring how good her ass looked in the tiny black underwear and instinctively placed a wet kiss in her left ass cheek as he grabbed the other tight, covering it completely with his hand.

"God," Stella whined quietly.

He kissed her ass cheeks three more times before standing up, parting her legs open with his foot and pushed his bulge against her ass again as he slid one hand inside her panties from the front, resting the other hand flat on the wall.

His fingers got soaked immediately. Stella gasped in reaction to his gentle touch. The left side of her face was pressed to the cold wall, feeling Aaron's breathings on her ear that tickled her a little.

"I'm such a whore for you," she complained. She could feel his hard bulge in her ass, biting her bottom lip just imagining it inside her.

Aaron spread her wetness all over and started to work his finger on her clit, pressing on it roughly but still being gentle, doing circular motions and teasing her entrance with two fingers.

Stella's breathing became louder and heavier as the delightful sensation down there intensified.

"You like this, don't you," he muttered in her ear.

"mmhm," Stella nodded, pressing her lips together. She couldn't speak anymore.

Four minutes in and she was already trembling, her legs were shaking and her knees almost gave up. As he orgasm reached its peak she let out a loud moan that was interrupted by Aaron's free hand.

"Quiet," he murmured in her ear, slowing down his fingers as Stella's body became still. He brought his wet fingers to her mouth, making her lick them, tasting herself on them. "Good, that's good," he grunted before catching her lips with his once again, getting the slight flavor of her pussy on them.

She tried to press her ass on his bulge, but he stepped away, walking to the sink to wash his hands while she recovered, still leaning onto the wall.

Aaron dried his hands with a paper towel and walked up behind her, placing a soft kiss on her neck as he pulled her pants up.

Stella turned around to face him, adjusting her jacket, pulling some pieces of hair out of her face and grabbed his face, kissing him roughly, but quickly being interrupted by the sound of the doorknob being twisted from outside which made them both jump.

"Oh shit," she whispered into her hand as she covered her mouth.

"Just a second," Aaron mouthed loud. "I'll go out first, you hide in the second stall, "he demanded, kissing her lips one last time. "Just so you know, I'm not done yet."

Stella sighed deep.  _ Holy shit how is he so fucking hot _ . Then picked up her purse from the floor and locked herself in the stall, leaning her back to the door still trying to recover, her chest felt a little sensitive now from being stuck to the wall but she loved this side of him.

Aaron adjusted his bulge so it wouldn't be that noticeable and opened the door, bumping into a bald man, "Sorry about that."

After Stella heard the stall next to her getting locked, she quickly stepped out and ran into the ladies room clacking her heels as quietly as possible.

That person definitely knew what happened there.


	13. Two scorpios

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aaron is judged by Stella's cat.

"What took you so long," JJ questioned as her coworker sat back in at the table.

"Uh there was a line."

JJ knew that there was no line, there are never lines in the males restrooms. He's been acting suspicious all day but JJ couldn't figure out why yet. And she didn't bring it up to him since it was none of her business.

Meanwhile Stella freshened up and changed her soaked underwear. Thank god she always carried a spare one on her purse. It was actually an advice from her own mother to have one in every bag she owned.

Then she joined her bartender friend, looking a little heated.

"What happened to you," Noel asked, airing her face with an old newspaper.

Stella laughed, snapping the paper from his hand. "Nothing, just give me my drink back."

She stayed there for a while, feeling Aaron's eyes on the back of her head. He was in fact looking at her, seeing how the bartender made her laugh. He was jealous, even after what he did to her moments earlier.

Stella took advantage of the situation and asked her friend if he knew any place that needed another bartender, that she was looking for a stable job.

She had recently moved to a new apartment, one that her mother didn't own, paying the first month with the money she saved during the summer at the ice cream shop. Her new place was smaller than the other one but it was good enough for her, and since she had just officially been cleared by her doctor to go back to her normal activities, she was looking for any job.

"Here, actually. I'm the only one during the week so it'll be nice having some help. I'll talk to my boss and let you know when I hear something," her friend explained excitedly.

"You are an angel, my friend," she responded as a loud guitar started playing.

The artist performing that night at The Bourbon looked way older than 27, making the undercover agents wonder if their unsub was even there and question again how he knew their victims' ages.

"Emily and Morgan are sure that the singer over there could be the next victim," JJ mouthed quietly to Hotch, looking around the bar. "Maybe we should head where they are, our unsub isn't here."

Aaron thought about it for a second, doing the same as her, looking at every person witnessing the show, agreeing with her.

"You're right."

_ "I have to go, I'll text you again when I'm done. And send me your apartment address,"  _ he texted Stella, she turned around glancing at him, but making eye contact with JJ instead.  _ She was the reason for Hotch weird behaviour _ , the blonde realized, making a funny face that Stella noticed, smiling back at Aaron's coworker.

_ "Maybe you can pick me up later, I'm gonna stay here for a while,"  _ she texted back.

Aaron felt a little upset, he didn't want to leave her there alone, looking all attractive surrounded by men, especially her friend at the bar. But he had no right to act that way, so he responded with a dry 'OK'.

**...**

After that, the night for the FBI didn't go well. They guessed that the unsub somehow noticed he was being watched and left the other bar before the rest of the team arrived, so there were no victims that night. At least they warned every bar manager about the situation, letting all the new artists know that they could be in danger, especially the ones in their late twenties.

Aaron texted Stella as soon as he got to the hotel, and sat in the lobby waiting for his coworkers to go to their respectives rooms.

"Are you coming?" Morgan asked, holding his bag on his shoulder.

"Yeah, I just have to handle one thing," he responded, pointing at his phone.

"Alright, get some rest, goodnight."

_ Oh he will definitely not rest that night.  _ "Goodnight."

Stella texted back, saying she was waiting for him outside the bar. He got there in less than fifteen minutes, pulling over as he saw his girl standing all alone.

She saw the black SUV blinkers and knew it was him. Stella opened the door and immediately felt his soft perfume as she sat on the cold seat next to him, admiring how attractive he looked driving.

"My bag is in the back seat, if you're cold," he offered before she put her seatbelt on. She reached for the bag, leaning a little more than she should've, making Aaron take his eyes off the road for two seconds to look at her ass that looked too good on those black jeans. "You're gonna make me crash."

She chuckled, getting back on her seat, "Where are the others staying tonight," she asked while putting a warm sweatshirt that smelled just like him. She wasn't really cold so she changed her jacket for his sweatshirt, to feel him closer.

"A hotel, not far."

"Maybe we should go there, to your room." Stella's apartment was farther away.

"Is that what you want?" He asked, softening his eyes. His eyes were focused on the road, but he felt Stella's eyes on him.

"Yeah, my apartment is kind of empty but still messy, I haven't moved in everything yet."

"I don't mind." He laid his large hand on her thigh, almost covering in completely.

"To my place then."

**...**

Not even inside her apartment Aaron grabbed her face and fiercely captured her lips with his, Stella struggling to open the door.

"how many drinks did you have?" He asked in the middle of the kiss while they desperately got rid of the first and second layer of clothes as they finally were inside, walking to the couch.

"Just one." She really wasn't supposed to be drinking since she had classes the next day at noon.

"Good." Aaron only wanted to make sure she was sober.

Stella wrapped her arms around his shoulders while he undid her bra, exposing her breasts. He couldn't help but stare at the long scar on her chest, he laid on top of her on the big sectional couch, as he traced kisses in every inch of her skin. He adjusted his face between her legs, kissing her inner thighs and taking out her panties before starting eating her out.

When he said he wasn't done, he meant it.

Stella grabbed his hair as he used his tongue on her clit and sucked on it gently.

Aaron maintained his rhythm, enjoying the taste of her spreading her wetness all over his mouth and chin, until he felt her legs starting to shake, but he stopped before she could finish.

That was something Stella actually enjoyed and did it often to herself, she liked that feeling of almost finishing.

Aaron took off his underwear and got a condom out of his pants. It's not that he was worried about catching some infection or anything, but he didn't want another child.

"Don't, I want you to cum inside me," she said, biting her lips as she grabbed his member once he positioned himself on top of her. And he accepted, assuming that she was on birth control. Which she was, since before she was even sexually active.

She guided his dick to her wet entrance, slipping it in slow, almost struggling since she was so tight, making Aaron groan at the same time Stella gasped, feeling how he was stretching her.

"I missed you," Stella confessed in his mouth as they kissed, but he shut her up biting her bottom lip while he started to move on top of her.

Aaron was scared to put his weight on her, afraid that her fragile chest bones would break, so he just stood back on his knees, grabbing her legs and lifted her hips off the couch, pulling her closer, moving in and out while stimulating her clit with his thumb.

Stella caressed his arms, he looked delightful from her point of view. As Aaron kept working his thumb on her, Stella was on edge again, now being able to finish, tightening her pussy around his dick as she tilted her head back, holding her moan pressing her lips together.

She wanted to give him a nice view too. "Please fuck me from behind," she declared looking into his dark eyes.

Their tongues touched one more time before Stella was leaning against the back of the couch, holding onto it while Aaron grabbed her waist tightly, thrusting violently and deep, making Stella gasp with every single thrust.

He gripped her hair between his fingers, pulling it hard. Stella stood back up a little to receive the kiss he was demanding. It was like she wasn't fragile anymore to him and all he wanted to do was fuck her hard.

And he did. Stella reached her second orgasm moments later after Aaron maintained his constant deep thrusts. Aaron finished almost simultaneously, emptying inside her just like she asked earlier. He hugged her tightly still from behind, kissing her shoulder as her left hand went to his hair, slowing her breathings down. She got more tired than usual.

"I think I have to take a bath man, you left me out of breath," Stella joked. But she was actually feeling dizzy. Her doctor did say no heavy activities for the first six weeks but didn't think sex applied to it.

"Can I join you?" He asked timidly.

"Yes please, just let me recover before the second round." Aaron chuckled, seeing her walk away.

Stella filled the bath that wasn't big but they would fit comfortably. After cleaning herself down there, she put a couple of organic bath bombs she had just bought and stepped in the very much needed warm water. Aaron joined her, sitting behind her.

They enjoyed the silence for a while, Aaron kissed her wet shoulders and neck that he loved so much and Stella leaned on his torso, feeling his hot skin and his strong heartbeat in on her back.

"What are we doing here, Hotch, what is this?" Stella broke the silence.

He sighed deep. "I don't know."

"Are we dating? Because I feel like we are, but if I think about it, we've only seen each other like less than ten times and in only four months. But I'm so attached to you. I don't know what you did to me, why I have so many feelings towards you and I don't even know what to name them. I feel like I already belong to you but I don't know you if you want a long distance thing, but what if we make it official and it all goes to shit," Stella spoke her mind.

_ Has it really only been four months? _ Aaron thought to himself. It truly felt like more, for the both of them.

"I like what we have, whatever it is. And if you're not comfortable with giving it a name, we don't have to. We can keep seeing each other, I can come visit you, if you want me to of course, and we can keep talking every day, that's what phones are for. It may not be the same as this but, is the best option for now."

"for now? So you see a future for us?" Stellas stomach tickled softly just by imagining a future.

"Don't you?"

She did want a future together, but she wasn't sure if there was actually one. They have such different lives. Before Aaron, she didn't plan on settling roots in one single state for the rest of her life, she wanted to travel and explore and be free. But right now, all she wanted was to be with him, and somehow she didn't like feeling that way. Where did her feeling of freedom go? She's never been this attached to someone like this before.

She let out a deep breath, "I guess, I don't know."

"I know, it's complicated. I think we should just enjoy this, and see what happens, we don't have to label anything."

"What should I call you then, when I talk about you?"

"You talk about me?"

"To my friend Izzy, yeah. I know you don't."

"I do, only with Rossi though, he's the only one that knows."

It was more like David was the only Aaron admitted it to.

"I don't mind, I like being your little secret," she responded, giving a soft kiss on his hand that was resting on her shoulder. "Can I call you ‘agent’? No. What are you?"

"You don't have to call me that. I'm a special agent, yes, but I'm also a lawyer you can refer to me as  _ 'my lawyer', _ " he said jokingly.

"What? I didn't know that." Stella tried to turn around but her neck only made it half through. Aaron took advantage, pecking her cheek.

"Yeah, I was a prosecutor for a while," his voice was so soft and calming. He felt calm around her, finally being together.

"See, there are so many things I don't know about you. Like when it's your birthday."

"November second. I don't know yours either."

"October thirty first," she said in a lower tone.

"That's like next week."

"So is yours."

They both smiled shyly, but neither saw each other's faces.

"Dude, we're both Scorpios, that explains everything." Stella gasped at the realization that they shared the same sign.

"What do you mean everything," Aaron questioned, he didn't really believe in the zodiac signs.

"I don't know. I know nothing about astrology," Stella responded, making him let out a silent laugh.

Then Stella gasped for the second time, "Oh hi princess, I was wondering where you were," she made her voice so soft as Misty walked in the bathroom meowing, jumping to sit on the toilet next to the bath. Aaron got the cat's attention, looking at him with an intense stare with her big green eyes that were too similar to Stella's, swinging her fluffy tail and purring softly as Stella petted her tiny face.

"You have a cat?" He had no idea. Somehow his body tensed up since the cat wouldn't stop staring at him, as if she knew something he didn't about himself. 

"Misty, this is Aaron," Stella began, "Oh never mind, she hates you."

Aaron copied Stellas movements and petted Misty's chin with his fingers, and she responded to it purring softly, closing her eyes to his touch.

"Yeah she loves me."

**...**

**_"When two Scorpios make a love match, it is a fierce tempest of intense passion. Both are obsessed with one another, and they move forward in love, sex and romance at an accelerated — some would say foolish — way. Personal relations are positively steamy but, to the equal and opposite extreme, disputes will also be frenetically powerful. This relationship could go either way: It will either be the most wonderful thing in the world or a destruction of both involved"._ **


	14. BZZZ

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Stella asks Aaron for help to find her dad in one of her visits to Quantico.

After the case in California was solved within three days, the team stayed in LA for one more, to take advantage of the trip and enjoy the warm California weather.

While the rest spent the day in Santa Monica, Aaron stayed at Stella's apartment while she was in classes, accompanied by Misty, who followed him around the house. He later went to pick Stella up at her campus as he promised that morning before she left, getting more than one look from the students, and a special stare -like the ones Stella's cat gave him- from Izzy who already knew who he was, the lawyer her best friend was seeing.  _ "Well I get now why you've been glowing lately," _ Izzy commented before Stella walked to him, as he leaned on the SUV door waiting for her, looking hotter than ever with his sunglasses on.  _ "I know, just look at him. He's worth every gunshot in my body." _

They spent the afternoon together as an early 'celebration' of each other's birthdays since they wouldn't be able to actually be together those days. And it basically consisted of making love nonstop until it was time for Aaron to leave that same night.

On Halloween, Stella's birthday, she actually didn't do anything special and just worked at the bar as if it was any other night. She had just gotten hired the day before and wouldn't miss the opportunity to make a lot of tips that night in her hot devil costume, that had every man drooling over her, which was her main objective. She made almost two hundred just in tips, and forty dollars more than her friend Noel.  _ 'Only because I don't have boobs', _ he complained. And he was correct. That push up bra was only worn at work.

Although Stella ended her shift a little upset. That night she thought she had seen a familiar face that has only seen once in an old picture. The man looked around his fifties and had the same eyes as Stella, which made her think they were related. And how he didn't look at her the way every man did while she prepared his drink, like she was a piece of meat. He looked at her face the entire time they interacted and his kind smile showed a similar dimple on his cheek as the one Stella had. Even when deep down she knew that he probably wasn't her dad, it made her think who truly was her biological father, the one Allison refused to talk about, and that uncertainty feeling was eating her guts.

But that feeling went away momentarily when she got back to her apartment and found a box by her door. It was a gift from Aaron with the note ' _Can't wait to see you again'_ that made the butterflies in her stomach go crazy as she read it in his voice. There were two big versions of her favorite candle, that she thought was discontinued but somehow he found it -even when she never told him about it-, along with a plane ticket dated for the last days of December. But it was more like the printed screenshot of the purchase and another note under it: ' _You can change the dates if you like_ '.

For Aaron's birthday she called him, confirming that she was going to visit on the dates he chose, that were actually perfect, and after they had one of their face time appointments.

She was so excited and nervous to visit him. And the thought of randomly bumping into Allison made her anxious, she literally lived only ten minutes away from him, so there was that possibility.

They hadn't really talked since she got back to California, only a few texts about the apartment and Allison checking in anyways, offering money, but Stella rejected it every time. They usually spent christmas together with Sadie and some family friends, but this year was different for obvious reasons and hadn't talked about it either.

She got to finish every assignment she had due to the week before holidays, and the night of christmas, after dropping Misty at Izzy's, she worked until 5 a.m. making lots in tips, again thanks to a sexy costume, this time it was an elf.

The day she got to Virginia, Aaron went to pick her up at the airport. Stella blushed as always and Aaron's heart rate went up when she saw her come out of the gate. Not really sure how they should greet, they hugged very tight. It was a little awkward, but they were nervous.

The cold breeze accompanied by small drops wetting Stella's jean jacket made her hug Aaron as they walked to his car in need for warmth. He turned the heat in as soon as they got in. Stella followed every movement he did with her eyes, in silence, she noticed that his hair was slightly longer, which she liked better.

"How did you find my favorite candle," she asked after he started driving through the airport parking lot.

"I did some research."

"But how did you even know it was my favorite, I never told you."

"I used my profiler skills I guess," he looked at Stella for a second before his eyes focused on the road again. "I noticed you had one already burned out in your living room, and you had the same one almost gone in your nightstand," he explained.

"Oh, that's interesting. Can you guess why it is my favorite scent though?" She challenged him.

He thought about it for a moment just to intrigue her, but he already knew the answer. "Because it makes your home always smell as if you just baked cookies," he responded in a cocky tone, intentionally.

Stella rolled her eyes, "How do you guess all that right." It was almost annoying to her that he knew small things about her, and she didn't have the skills to do the same to him. Aaron laughed under his breath at her childish irritation.

Once they arrived at his apartment, Stella went directly to crash on his couch. She had woken up that day at 3 a.m. since her flight departed two hours later, and didn't get any sleep on the plane. Aaron left her bag on the dinner table and sat next to her, putting her legs on his thighs as she adjusted against his warm and cozy body, resting her head on his chest.

"So what are your plans for us?" She asked after yawning.

"I don't have any."

He didn't think of anything just in case he was called from work, which was unlikely to happen since almost the entire team was on vacation but there still was the possibility. And Stella had that in mind, so she preferred to stay inside.

"Good. I'm only here for three days, so we have to enjoy every second."

It felt so good for Stella to finally be in his arms, impregnate his perfume on her and close her eyes just to focus on the sound of his heartbeat, falling asleep to it.

**...**

They woke up at noon after a two hour nap that neither of them planned. Stella was exhausted because her sleep schedule was all messed up recently due to her job, and so was Aaron, who hadn't had a proper nap in years.

Stella was craving Chinese food from her favorite place in the neighborhood, but instead of going to the restaurant they ordered take out, mostly because she was still afraid of randomly running into her mother, to which Aaron told her that it was very unlikely since it still was winter holidays, and accident season so she's probably stuck in the hospital 24/7 during these dates. And it was true, since Stella could recall, her mother always left the family dinners this time of the year, and never really was there on Christmas mornings or New years eve.

While they ate, Aaron told her that this year he got to spend Christmas with Jack and that he had asked for an Ariel doll, which he immediately filled with random drawings on the doll's arms and legs, and that he still asked for her, even to Haley, who had no idea who this Stella girl was.  _ "She's a friend of mine" _ , Aaron responded when his ex wife asked him once.

Then Stella zoned out for a few seconds. Her memories went back to the night she thought, or more like felt, that she had seen her father.

"What's on your mind," Aaron snapped her out of her thoughts, squeezing her thigh.

"Do you think you can help me with something? Like use your FBI privileges?"

Aaron furrowed his brows, "Sure, anything. What's up?"

"I need to find my dad, I wanna know who he is." 

He stood up in silence as Stella watched him put the food leftovers away.

"You wanna go for a ride?"

**...**

Aaron decided to take her to the BAU. Penelope was the only one that was still working during the holidays and she was all they needed. Once they got to the building, Aaron put the visitor credential on Stella's jacket and held her hand the entire elevator ride. He wasn't afraid that anyone would see them, and even if someone did, he didn't care. Not anymore.

Which was good since the first person they ran into as they walked through the bullpen was Spencer Reid.

"Reid, I thought you were in Vegas," Aaron said as a way of greeting. Spencer's eyes were stuck on Stella, who was still holding Aaron's hand.

At that moment they didn't look like a couple at all. Aaron was dressed up in a grey suit and Stella looked younger than usual, she had no makeup on and the hoodie on her head accentuated her baby face.

"I was, I got back yesterday. Stella, hi. W-what are you doing here, you guys, doing here?"

The pictures Reid saw once of her being half naked  _ -fucking his boss- _ popped on his head automatically, trying to erase them by shaking his head.

"Just visiting, I wanted to see Penelope and now you, I didn't know you were here too," she responded, moving her hands around. 

"Yeah, she's in her office," Spencer pointed in that direction with his coffee mug as his other hand stayed in his pocket.

"Thanks Reid," Aaron tapped his shoulder.

"I'll see you later Spencer!" Stella waved with a big smile before going into Hotchner's office.

He closed the door, the blinds and sat on his chair. "I need to know first what you know about your father."

"I know nothing about the man. Allison always refused to talk about him."

Stella walked around the office, paying attention to every award she saw, the diplomas on his wall, thinking that the room needed more life and colors,  _ a plant wouldn't hurt, _ she thought. The giant books on the shelf behind him caught her attention, running her fingers through them and then focusing on the picture of him and Jack he kept there, smiling at it.

"There must be something, otherwise we can't help you much," he said while following her movements around his office. He never really thought about having her at the BAU.

"I know they dated for a couple of months, I think she was eighteen at that time."

"So they could've met in college," Aaron commented.

"I guess." Stella walked to him and sat on his lap. "But I remember, when I was younger, I sneaked into my mom's bedroom and found a box under her bed, and there was this picture of her and this guy, who looked older than her, and he had green eyes. No one in my family has that eye color, so I always assumed he was my dad," she explained while playing with his soft hair.

"Do you think you can get that picture? we can do face recognition, it'll make things easier."

"I'll have to go home," she twitched her mouth. She truly didn't want to see Allison.

But she was willing to take that risk.

Half an hour later Aaron was parked a couple of blocks away from her house. "Are you sure about this?"

"Not really, but I can't escape her forever."

Stella unbuckled her seatbelt and stepped out of the car, running the two other blocks to the house since it was still raining. She got the hidden key above the door frame that she could barely reach and entered quietly.

"Allison?" She shouted, just in case, crossing her fingers that her mother was at work. After not hearing a response, she quietly walked around the house, which looked a bit messier than usual. 

Then she went upstairs into her mom's bedroom, looking for that box kneeling to glimpse under the bed. But it wasn't there anymore. Stella checked her closet, dresser, nightstand, but found nothing.  _ Maybe she took it to the basement _ , she thought. And went through all the boxes down there.

Until she finally found it.

Stella quickly went back upstairs to her own room, or former room, grabbed a small bag from her drawer and cleaned the wet foot prints she left on the floor with a mop, and sprinted back to the SUV.

"Found it," she said out of breath, getting the wet pieces of hair out of her face.

"Good girl," Aaron responded, looking at the picture she handed him. It came out so naturally, but it woke something inside Stella. "What's that?" he asked pointing at the pink velvet bag.

Stella hesitated as her cheeks flushed, "Uh, my toy."

"What...kind of toy?" He asked, raising a brow with a smirk on his face.

"The one that makes  _ 'bzzz', _ " she responded as she hid the tiny bag on her jacket's front pocket.

**...**

Once they got back to the BAU, they headed directly to Penelope's office.

"Oh my god it is really you," Garcia said, reaching Stella for a big hug. Spencer had told her that Stella was there but didn't find her.

"It's so good to see you again," Stella hugged her back.

Aaron witnessed their reunion with a proud smile. He loved that they got along.

"Sorry Garcia, but we need your tech analyst skills," he interrupted.

"Sure, boss, for you anything. I'm rotting here with nothing fun to do with all of you away," Penelope grumbled.

Stella handed her the picture, "I need you to find this man."

"That's gonna be a piece of cake."

Although Garcia warned her that it could take a while since the process was simple but slow, so Stella and Aaron went back to his office.

"How long does it usually take?" Stella asked Aaron, as she subtly locked the door behind her.

"Like two hours, probably more."

"What should we do then. That's a lot of time." 

He noticed the look on her face. "Do you...have anything in mind?"

"Oh I do, Agent Hotchner, I've always wanted to do it in an office," she said walking slowly towards him.

"We-we can't do it here," he stuttered.

"Why, you were the one calling me good girl earlier, it's your fault I'm horny now," her voice became softer as she played with the end of his tie looking up at him through her lashes.

It was actually something Aaron has fantasized about too, but never had the chance to do it.

"Fuck it," he said before grabbing her face, kissing her with open mouth. She responded to it without closing her eyes, admiring his face of desire.

Stella moved her hands up to his shoulder, sliding them inside his jacket implying him to take it off and letting it fall to the ground as she guided him walking backwards to his couch.

Aaron let himself fall on it while Stella got rid of her jacket and hoodie, being left only with her bra. She kneeled in between his legs and groped his thighs firmly, up and down before unbuckling his belt, keeping eye contact the entire time. "You have no idea how much I've missed you."

It was intimidating for Aaron, in the best way possible, he was so turned on and loved it whenever Stella took charge.

She pulled his pants all the way down with his help and touched his large bulge through the fabric.

"You're so hard Hotch," she whispered, biting her bottom lip. Her mouth was almost watering.

But before using her mouth, Stella unbuttoned his shirt as he took his tie off, tracing soft kisses on his chest down to his stomach that made him quiver. Aaron placed one hand on her head, taking the hair out of the way. He wanted to see it all. Then she kissed his dick above his boxers, making Aaron lick his lips. She looked gorgeous from his point of view, her cheeks were already flushed and so were her lips.

She took it out completely and started to make soft strokes, looking at his face before bringing it into her mouth. Licking his tip softly then moving her tongue up and down through his length leaving traces of spit. Then she went for it, focusing her mouth on his tip, swirling her tongue as her hands moved in circular motions on the rest.

It felt so good for Aaron, pulling her hair out of the way once again to see her better. "That's so good, so fucking good," he grunted, involuntarily lifting his hips from the couch.

She kept her motions for a while but she needed him inside her badly. Stella stood up and took her converse and pants off dragging her panties along, adjusting on top of him with her legs on his sides as she guided his dick inside her. She held onto the back of the couch and started to move up and down, making Aaron take her bra off, bringing one nipple into his mouth as he played with her piercings using his tongue, biting and pulling them softly.

Stella squirmed under the sensation, moaning quietly as he ran his hands up and down her back, bringing her closer to him.

Aaron was so ready to finish already but he knew she wasn't.

"Wait," he murmured agitated. Stella let go from his body leaning back a little following his movements as Aaron reached for her jacket, taking out her toy and bringing it to her sensitive clit while he turned it on. "Come for me baby." Stella captured his mouth fiercely without erasing the big smile off her face. He's never called her baby before.

Once he felt her pussy tightening around him, Aaron began to push his hips up and down under her, as she stood on her knees on the couch, giving him more room for his violent thrusts.

Stella hugged him tight by his neck while she finished, feeling him finishing too, emptying himself inside her, as he kissed her chest. Both tried not to make any loud sound, only letting out heavy breathings.

"I'm crazy for you, Stella," he groaned with his face between her tits, licking and kissing her now salty skin.

"I know," she murmured out of breath. 

She was crazy for him too.


	15. Kittens and horses

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Stella finds her dad, not how she expected.

Doing face recognition with a picture from over twenty years ago took more than Penelope expected, she had to digitally alter the photo to simulate how the man in the picture would look twenty years later, with the hope that could make the work faster, but it didn't.

"I'm pretty sure I will have to leave my computer working all night, and hopefully tomorrow there will be a match, or even later tonight," she explained to Stella. Aaron had already thought of that possibility.

Then they went back to his office, ready to go for a second round, but a knock on Hotchner's office didn't let them.

They adjusted their clothes back on quickly, and Stella sat in the chair in front of the desk as if nothing had happened, crossing her legs like the lady she was.

Once Aaron opened the door a big confused frown formed on his face, he hasn't seen that face in years, "Sean?"

Stella looked in that direction, seeing a tall blond man, who hugged Aaron with a big smile.

"I thought you were already dead," the man said, walking inside. "Oh I'm sorry, I didn't know you had company," he said as a smirk formed in his face.

"Yeah I uh, Sean this is Stella," Aaron said nervously. Stella could see panic on his face.

"Hi," the guy said confidently, stretching his hand to her.

"This is my brother Sean".  _ Brother?  _ Another thing Stella didn't know about Aaron. They looked nothing alike, she would've never guessed they were related.

"Nice to meet you," she responded, accepting his warm handshake. "I have to check on Garcia now, so I'll see you later," she said as she stood up, looking at Aaron, hoping to sound like one of the BAU agents to save Aaron. And herself.

And just like that she vanished, hiding in Penelope's office.

"I didn't know Hotch had a brother," she commented as soon as Garcia opened.

"Oh no way, Sean is here?" she gasped, "Oh please sit, tell me what happened."

"I don't know, I escaped before anything awkward happened."

**...**

"Who is Stella," Sean asked him as he sat in the same chair she was sitting on.

Aaron cleared his throat, but he changed the subject, "I'm guessing you're not here to talk about life. What brings you here, what did you do now."

Sean adjusted on the chair and explained that he was thinking about opening his own restaurant, well in fact had already everything set up and that he was avoiding getting a lawyer to go through all the legal stuff but they were more complicated than he thought so he needed his brothers abilities as lawyer to do it quick, which kind of ruined his plans for the day with Stella, but he couldn't not help his brother.

So he texted her,  _ "I have to handle a situation urgently, I'm sorry." _

_ "It's okay. Take your time. I'll wait for you." _

_ What do I do now _ , Stella thought, she was stuck in the BAU, where she didn't belong.

"We can go to have dinner somewhere, and then when we come back maybe we'll have a match," Penelope suggested, which sounded like a great plan.

"Are you sure I can just hang out here with you?" Stella asked unsure about coming back later, for the third time.

"Of course angel eyes, as long as you have a credential anyone can be here."

Spencer joined them later and the three of them went to a vegan sushi place Garcia recommended that was only a couple of blocks away so they went on foot. It was already getting dark and colder that fog came out of their mouths whenever they talked.

As they waited for their food at the very end of the restaurant, sitting on a corner booth by the window, what Stella was most afraid of during her short visit, happened.

"Oh crap," she mouthed hiding behind Spencer, who was sitting next to her.

"What, what happened," he said, looking around the restaurant confused.

"My mom is here, so please don't look up."

Penelope knew right away what she meant, and the three of them pretended to be on their phones, Spencer just playing along. Stella put her hood on and stayed hidden behind Spencer.

"What is she even going here, she's the most carnivore person in the world," she whispered angrily.

"I'm pretty sure she's on a date," Spencer mouthed, still looking at his prehistoric phone.

_ Well at least she moved on _ , Stella thought, feeling relieved somehow. Perhaps her mom forgave her already. But she was still scared of her, so she stayed with her head down.

"But she's ordering take out, so she should leave soon," Spencer murmured again as he subtly glanced in Allison's direction. Thank god Penelope was giving her back to the entrance, otherwise she would've immediately caught Allison's attention by her bright pink outfit.

They waited ten minutes in silence, waiting for their food to arrive. Until Allison finally left the restaurant.

"Why exactly were you hiding from her," Reid asked Stella, as he took the first bite of a roll, not sure how to properly eat it.

"Don't you not know the story?" Garcia asked. Stella felt kind of embarrassed that people knew about how she got to be with Aaron.

"Right. The pictures," Reid said, raising his brows, still kind of disappointed.

Stella almost choked on her piece of sushi, struggling to swallow, tapping Spencer's shoulder and taking a sip of her water.

Penelope only widened her eyes to Reid giving him a death stare.

"You saw the pictures?" She asked, feeling her cheeks glowing red out of embarrassment.

But neither answered.

"Oh my god." At that moment she wished the earth would swallow her whole. "Who else saw them?"

"Just us, and we are all professionals so don't worry girl, that was looking at pictures of kittens and puppies compared to the murders we see everyday," Garcia comforted her, but it came out weird.

"More like pictures of kittens and horses," Reid spat quietly, making Stella and Garcia cover their mouths at the same time. She knew exactly what he meant.

Once they went back to the BAU, Aaron was still inside his office with his brother. And like Garcia predicted, there was already a match on the system.

"Oh no," Penelope murmured as she sat on her chair.

Stella stood behind her leaning to the screen better, "What is it?"

"Stella I'm so sorry."

The image on the computer showed an old man, older than what she expected. "Is that him?"

"Was... him. He passed away three years ago. Leukemia."

Stella didn't react at all. And didn't feel anything. Except for confusion. "How old was he?"

"Sixty one."

He was like twenty years older than her mother.

"Can you tell me what was he? Who was he?" She moved a chair closer and sat next to Garcia as she typed fast on her keyboard.

His name was Freddie Hoffmann, he came from a german family with doctors in every generation. He went through medical school, was a researcher and also taught some classes at the university her mother went to. He was Allison's teacher at some point, and when the school director found out he had a relationship with an unknown student, he got fired.

That whole story made sense in Stella's head. Her mother was that unknown student. That's why she never talked about it. If her school found out back then she would've probably been expelled.

"I'm truly sorry, Stella," Garcia said again.

"Don't be. I wanted to know and I got my answers, so thank you."

The two of them along with Spencer who joined them later again, kept investigating Freddie, finding out that he was an important figure in the medicine field. He was doing some studies and trials about the illness that killed him until his very last day.

"How are you feeling?" Aaron asked her in the car on their way to his apartment later that night.

"Fine I guess. I just didn't think about the possibility of him being dead."

Even when she said she was fine, Stella had a lost look on her face.

But she decided to forget about it. Until later that night.

She couldn't sleep thinking that her biological father, who according to the research Penelope made, was buried at a cemetery only forty minutes away.

"Are you thinking about visiting him?" Aaron asked her at two in the morning. He had woken up by feeling her move too much next to him.

They both laid on their side, facing each other. "Yeah, I just need...I don't know. An official closure? Is that stupid? I mean I haven't really felt the need to know who he was until a few weeks, since I was fifteen." She said softly. Aaron could see her sad expression, feeling the urge to cuddle her, placing one arm under her neck as she adjusted her head on his chest, pulling her closer.

"It's not stupid at all. If that is something that will give you closure then you should do it."

**...**

The next morning at ten a.m. Stella and Aaron were getting ready to go to the Quantico national cemetery.

They got there after a quiet drive. Stella's mind was loud and Aaron knew that, but he didn't want to push her to talk about it, so he just held her thigh the entire drive, and kissed her hand every once in a while.

Aaron parked the car and waited for Stella to say something or step out of the car, but she didn't, "Do you want to go alone or-"

"No, I need you with me," she interrupted.

They walked together through the park that was still humid from the rain of the day before. Penelope had given them the direction of where Freddie was exactly buried, but they still walked in circles for at least ten minutes, the place was like a maze.

Until they found the right grave. Stella bought one single flower, and placed it on the grass in front of the gravestone. There were flowers there already, but they were dry, at least one week old. Stella wondered who could've put them there since according to the records he was a lonely man, no kids and never got married.

Or that's what she thought.

Aaron and Stella felt a presence behind them, making them both turn around breaking their hug. It was a beautiful blonde woman holding a toddler, who wasn't more than five years old.

"Do I know you?" The woman asked confused with a very marked accent, getting closer to them standing a couple of feet away from Stella.

Stella opened her mouth to answer but nothing came out, so Aaron spoke for her instead. "No, ma'am. We were just visiting an old friend." He truly didn't know what to answer either, but it was better than nothing.

The woman frowned her brows, letting go of the kid who immediately hid behind her legs. "Fred didn't have any friends."

"I'm sorry but you are..?" Stella finally spoke. She didn't like the look the woman was giving them.

"I'm Nina, and you're standing on my husbands' grave," she answered in her thick accent.

Stella swallowed nervously, crossing her arms on her chest. "Oh I'm sorry, I thought he wasn't married."

"He wasn't. Not officially anyway, And who are you." Nina asked, she was being overprotective over her son, letting him stay behind her.

"I'm Stella, I'm" She wasn't sure about what to say, but it just came out, "I'm Freddie's daughter." The woman let out a big laugh, but she wasn't mocking her, it just took her by surprise.

"Frank, my son, is his only child," she responded.

That little boy was Stella's brother. Somehow Stella felt like crying, a knot forming on her throat. She's always dreamt about being an older sister, or a sister in general.

"Frank?" She asked quietly, looking at the little boy who was peeking at her shyly. struggling to hold the colorful flower arrangement.

Both women knew that something weird was going on, so Aaron decided to leave them alone so they could talk, and waited for Stella in the car.

Turns out that Freddie wasn't a loner. He was actually a family man, a kind one. He met Nina three years before he passed away, and it was instant love. By that time he already knew about his Cancer, but Nina still wanted to be with him and she ended up pregnant with little Frank, who became more confident and softened up to Stella.

"He never mentioned a daughter," Nina said, kind of disappointed.

"Yeah, I don't think he knew about my existence."

The two of them ended up talking about Freddie for over an hour, Stella asked her all types of questions trying to get to know her father, and Nina tried to answer them all, but there were things about him she didn't know either.

Stella finally went back to Aaron who was waiting for her patiently. She got inside the car and bursted out into tears, covering her face with both hands.

"Whoa, hey what is it?" Aaron asked, rubbing her thigh. He waited for her sobbing to stop and asked again.

"I have a little brother," she finally responded looking at him. Aaron gave her the most kind and worried smile. Those were happy tears. "He's so sweet Aaron."

Stella told him everything she talked about with Nina, and telling him that she was already invited to their house whenever she wanted. Since Freddie passed away, it was just Nina and Frank. She was Russian and was all alone in the states, so Stella was a literal angel sent to her to keep her company, were her words.

Besides from the huge joy Stella felt after knowing she had more family, she also felt lost. Now that she knew she was an older sister, her plans for her future got all messed up and felt that her sense freedom was officially gone. But by choice. She had a baby brother and the thought of not seeing him grow up while she was traveling the world wasn't a nice thing anymore.

Maybe she could settle her roots in Virginia for a while, at least until Frank is old enough.


	16. Sharing hobbies

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aaron takes Stella out for a 9 a.m. run, then Stella makes him do what she does for fun.

Stella's trips to Quantico became kind of a regular thing, traveling there three times during the past three months. Each time she went it was for the weekend, staying at Aaron's, still avoiding Allison, and visiting Frank and Nina at their big house, that was once Freddie's.

It fascinated her how much she could know about her father just by looking at the things he had, but everything she knew was thanks to Aaron, who profiled the dead man to give Stella an insight of him.

That night Stella introduced Aaron to little Frank as her boyfriend by accident. They looked at each other at the same time, both smiling shyly. And when they went back home later , they talked about it while drinking some red wine, sitting on his comfortable couch.

"What if we go to shit," Stella confessed as she ran her finger on the rim of the glass.

"Why would we," he questioned, tenderly cupping her face with his big hand. "Let's admit it, we've been in a relationship for like, seven months now? Long distance, yes, but I'd say we're very stable and we've managed to make it work so well. And now we're just giving it a name, no big deal," he comforted her as he admired her sparkling eyes.

She was about to answer back, opening her mouth, when his phone rang. "I'm sorry, I have to go. We'll talk when I get back," he promised, giving her one last kiss before leaving. Somehow she still felt that if they made it official their relationship would go to shit.

But it didn't. It actually made it even better.

It was already April, time for Stella to go to Virginia once again. Although she told Aaron she wouldn't be able to go yet since she had just paid rent. During those past months she realized how much Allison saved her by letting her stay at one of her apartments before. Now she had to do what every normal adult did, she asked for loans at the beginning of the semester to pay for her last year of college and prepare mentally to be in debt for a while after graduating.

Aaron had gotten used to having her in his place once a month, so he couldn't wait, buying her a plane ticket for Easter since Jack was going to spend it with Haley and didn't want to be all alone, or else he would go to work anyway to keep himself occupied.

Stella got there the night before the holidays, losing her opportunity to make a lot of tips at the bar. But it was so worth it mainly because the sex and cuddles after not seeing Aaron for over a month was the best thing.

The next morning she woke up by feeling Aaron getting out of bed, even when he tried to be as quiet as possible.

"I'm going for a run," he said softly once he saw Stella open her big eyes, leaning to kiss her forehead. She brought the bed covers closer to her face, sinking into the bed.

"Alone?" She asked with a raspy voice, squinting her eyes at him. Although she was still sleepy, she felt well rested.

"Unless you want to go with me," Aaron offered, raising his brows as an invitation, even when he was aware she wasn't a morning person. "You'll have to get up right now though, the park gets too crowded by noon."

Stella yawned big, pulling the warm covers back and looking at the time on her phone that marked 9:08. "Okay. Just give me five minutes."

While Stella got ready, Aaron prepared a pre workout for the both of them, despite him knowing that she wasn't much of a runner. And since she didn't plan on working out before packing her bag the day before, she had to borrow a pair of biking shorts from Aaron, which surprisingly fitted nice.

"They look better on you," Aaron commented as Stella walked in the Kitchen. He was finishing drinking his shake.

"I know," she agreed, turning around, giving him a nice view of her ass that made Aaron feel tempted. But he didn't do nor say anything, he just handed Stella her pre workout looking at her as he moistened his lips with his tongue. "They do have this weird extra fabric on the front though." She added lifting her big hoodie pointing at her crotch area, making Aaron silently laugh by the weird way she grabbed that part of the shorts.

They got to a park twenty minutes later by car, Aaron's favorite place to train. "Here, eat this first," he offered, handing her a banana while still in the car. Stella peeled it and brought it to her mouth, as Aaron watched her.

"Creep," she mouthed with her mouth full, looking out the window.

Aaron looked away, peeling his own fruit, "Sorry."

She took a second bite, looking directly into his eyes, "So, how much do you usually run?"

"Five miles for now," he answered carelessly.

"For now? " she asked, swallowing without even chewing the piece of fruit. There was no way she was going to even run three. "What are you an athlete or something?"

He chuckled at her reaction. "No, but I am preparing for a triathlon for next month."

"Holy crap. Why didn't you tell me. Come on, let's go," she said enthusiastically.

Stella stretched her body as she usually did before doing yoga and got ready to follow Aaron's pace. She was fine for the first fifteen minutes, running behind him admiring how hot he looked even running. But by the sixth lap around the park she was exhausted.

"You go on," she said out of breath as she saw him stopping to wait for her, resting both hands on her knees, "I'll wait for you, here, laying on the grass, trying not to pass out, or vomit your banana." Aaron only laughed and continued his training.

Forty minutes later he was back, laying next to her, looking up at the very blue sky. Stella had already fully recovered and actually did some light yoga while he ran, getting flirty glances from him every time he passed by her, eating her with his eyes. He loved how she looked on his clothes.

Stella laid on her stomach to look at him better, admiring his side profile, his chest moving up and down as he regulated his breathing, looking all sweaty. She immediately got some flashbacks from one day, a long time ago, at some random lake cabin where she unintentionally made herself orgasm thinking about him, looking exactly like that.

He turned his head to look at her as he felt her staring. "What."

Stella sighed deep, so in love. "Nothing. You're pretty," she said casually.

Aaron unconsciously copied her, sighing deep too, "I would kiss you right now, but I'm so disgustingly sweaty."

Stella scooted closer and pecked his lips softly anyway, tasting his saltiness, "Is this what you do for fun?" She asked playing with his soft hair, genuinely intrigued.

"Mhm," he responded nodding, still out of breath. "And coach Jack's soccer team some Saturdays," he added seconds later.

They stayed silent as Aaron recovered completely, listening to the screaming and laughing children. It wasn't even elven yet and the park was already getting full.

Stella's attention was focused on a group of teenager sitting a few feet away from them, they were sitting in a small circle on the grass and it seemed like they were painting each other in their notebooks, some using watercolors and others only using their charcoal pencils. Then a brilliant idea popped in her head, trying to hold her smile. "Would you drive me somewhere later?"

Aaron's eyes went to her face, noticing her mischievous eyes, "Wherever you want, beautiful."

**...**

"An art supply store?" Aaron questioned as they parked outside a small shop. "What are you planning on doing Ms. Broste?"

Stella gave him a malicious smile before stepping out of the car, "You'll see."

That store was old but had every paint there could possibly be in the world. For Stella, it was straight heaven and the old man at the cashier was god himself. The god of paints as Stella called him since he knew all about them, and advised her to buy a new cream based body paint.

Eight minutes later she was back, with a reusable bag full of supplies.

"What did you buy?" he asked, trying to peek inside the bag, but Stella pulled it closer to her.

"Patience, young grasshopper."

Aaron snorted at her answer, starting the car. "Did you just quote Kung Fu?"

"Hell yeah I did."

On their way back home, Aaron kept trying to peek inside the bag but Stella wouldn't let him, or else her fun and sexy idea would be ruined.

"Now can you tell me?" Aaron asked as soon as he shut the apartment door, tossing the keys on the table.

Stella smirked at him, "Nope. You have to shower first," she ordered, hiding the bag behind a pillow of the couch

Aaron followed her movements, he still couldn't figure out Stella's plans. "And you don't?"

"I do actually," she agreed, slightly narrowing her eyes.

"We should save the earth then, and shower together," he teased as a smirk formed in his face, walking towards her.

"If you insist," she took half a step back putting her palm on his chest, "But no sex. You clean your body, I'll clean mine."

"Fine. Can I wash your hair though? I've always wanted to wash your hair," he asked as he pecked her lips softly.

Stella almost melted just by thinking of him wanting to do that, and because of the kiss. "Fine."

She waited for Aaron to get in the shower to set up the paints and the space she could use, not really sure where and how to prep it. She thought about doing it in his room, use some old newspaper she saw on his coffee table and bed sheets to cover the bed, she'd have to buy him new ones though if they get stained, which they definitely will.

Once she was done setting the supplies, she got her own shampoo and conditioner from her bag and joined Aaron, who was almost done.

"What took you so long?" He asked, receiving the shampoo bottle from her hands.

"I was prepping the work area," she answered in a mysterious voice that sounded more seductive than what she intended, but seeing Aaron all wet pushing his hair back with both hands as the water ran down his face was a dream come true.

She let him wet her hair with the shower head as he put one hand above her eyes so the water wouldn't get to her eyes. It felt slightly colder than how she liked but didn't say anything. He handed her the shower head and started to massage her head with a generous amount of shampoo as she looked up at him, then closed her eyes enjoying his massage. He was so gentle with her, nothing compared to how Stella actually washed her hair, kind of roughly and in one minute only.

"Is this okay?" He asked as he applied a little bit more pressure with his fingers on her scalp. Stella nodded, still with her eyes closed. "And this?" Now he was spreading some of the foam on her shoulders. Stella exhaled heavily and nodded again. "What about this?" He had now moved his hands to her breasts, but not quite, avoiding the most sensitive area spreading it around them.

"We are so not saving the earth right now," she commented grinning at him as she opened one eye while getting some water off the other.

Aaron leaned down and pecked her wet cheek before rinsing the water off her hair. "Turn around now," he ordered, getting a nasty look from her, "I'm just going to put some conditioner on, don't get your hopes high." Stella bit her cheek from the inside and did as he said. He untangled her hair running his fingers through it, admiring the bright red color that suited her skin tone so well. He kissed her shoulder and started rinsing again.

He then stepped out of the shower and let Stella finish washing her body. "I'm gonna get dressed now, I'll prepare us some breakfast."

"NO!" Stella exclaimed loud, "You can't get dressed sir."

Aaron was now getting where her idea was going, "Excuse me?"

Stella poked her head from the shower curtain, "You heard me. You're fine like that. So fine," she teased, looking him up and down. He only had a towel around his waist. "Just don't go in your room yet."

He shook his head and stepped out of the bathroom, going to prepare some coffee for the both of them.

Stella later joined him, with a towel around her chest as her wet brushed hair slightly dripped some water. "Yeah, we can't eat either."

"Not even coffee?" He asked as he handed her a mug. She received it and nodded her head pointing at his room, inviting him to follow her.

"Since we already did what you do for fun, now we're doing what I do for fun," she explained as they entered the already messy looking room.

Aaron looked around, seeing newspaper pages on the floor, a sheet covering his bed, some paint and brushes on his desk, "Which is?"

"Body painting dude," she responded excitedly. "But first, we have to prep our bodies." She reached for some lotion on her bag and placed her mug on his nightstand.

"So you made me shower, just to get dirty again?" His tone implied annoyance, but he was actually eager to do whatever Stella wanted.

"We can shower again later," she assured. She applied cream on her hand, spreading some on her shoulders and arms. Then slowly let her towel fall to the floor, applying some more on her chest, breasts, stomach and legs, all as Aaron watched her while finishing his hot coffee. Stella was only planning on getting herself painted, unless he wanted otherwise. Once she was done applying moisturizer on her entire body she handed him some paint and brushes.

"What am I supposed to do?" Aaron hesitated. Let's say that he didn't remember the last time he held a paint brush.

"Just paint. Anything you want, however you want. There are no rules here, Hotch," she encouraged him.

Stella handed him a paint palette and watched him choose the colors. Yellow, purple, white and black, pouring the right amount on the plastic.

Aaron started with her chest. The first white strokes were short and a little hesitant, looking at Stella's eyes for approval, but she didn't say anything. So he kept going. He covered her entire chest with purple paint, not really sure what he was for.

"Are these paints edible?" He asked looking down at her raising his brows as he delicately painted her left nipple.

She followed his hands motions, which were very steady showing his natural confidence, "I'm pretty sure they are toxic, if you consume a good amount."

"So licking some, wouldn't send me to the hospital?"

"I guess you have to find out."

He sat on the end of his bed, guiding Stella by her hips, standing in front of him as he started to paint her stomach with white. Once he covered it completely he chose a thinner brush to use the black paint and started to improvise.

Stella looked down, seeing his adorable focused face as he drew some uneven wings, stripes and some thin legs. "Is that a bee?"

Aaron let out a laugh while nodding, without taking his eyes from his drawing, "Yeah."

Stella played with his hair as he finished his bee, adding the yellow stripes to move his painting to her thighs. But he realized that painting her legs with a small brush was going to take too long.

Aaron stood up and turned Stella against the bed, telling her to lay down. He really didn't care if the sheets got dirty or not. He left the paint brushes aside and slowly started to pour the paint on her thighs, Stella feeling the cold liquid against her skin. He then spread the paint with his hands and fingertips, all over her legs, moving up to breasts and stomach, kind of ruining the bee he just drew.

Stella was resting on her elbows, watching and feeling Aaron's big hands on her. "You are so good with those hands," she muttered biting her lip, looking up at him. He always knew where to use his hands, and at that moment were only focused on massaging her breasts using his thumb on her nipple and squirting some more paint, this time with yellow, mixing it with the purple making a shade of grey.

Feeling the arousal growing in between her legs, Stella sat back up, teasing the towel around his waist that already had a noticeable bulge under it. He moved his hands to her face, getting some paint on her cheeks as she let his towel fall.

"I'm not done painting yet," he provoked her, softening his voice.

"Yes. Yes you are."

Stella softly grabbed his dick, stroking it as she looked up at him while he kept grazing her cheek, putting her hair behind her ears.

She started placing soft kisses on his lower stomach while maintaining her hand motions, moving her lips from his hips to his pelvis. Decided, she licked his shaft, from down up to his tip, swirling her tongue on it using her head to do a better motion.

Aaron tilted his head down, licking his lips as he saw Stella let a spit fall slowly on his tip before going in more intensely, using one hand on the rest as the other rested on her thigh close to her already wet area.

He stopped her motions by grabbing her by the jaw. Aaron pulled away and kneeled in front of her, wetted his fingers with some more paint, spreading it on her legs once again. She laid back on her elbows and slightly parted her legs open, getting his whole attention as he noticed how soaked she was.

"Do you get aroused when painting yourself?" He asked, while he messily kept spreading the paint on her legs..

"If I'm alone, yes, sometimes," she confessed shyly.

"And what do you do about it?" His hands got to her inner thigh, closer to her wet area but carefully making sure the paint wouldn't touch her there. She didn't answer. "Can you do this?" He spread her legs more open, leaning his face in between her thighs and licking her clean with his tongue deep on her entrance, dragging it up to her clit.

Stella let herself fall back on the bed, bringing her legs closer to her to give him more room. "That's just you baby. Only you can do that," she whined.

Aaron kept working his tongue all over her, spreading her legs open with his arms, sucking and licking on her clit, wishing he could use his fingers too but at that moment they were soaked in paint. He enjoyed fucking Stell with his tongue, hearing her whimper and feeling her body shake, as her fingers grab his hair tight.

Stella then moved higher up on the bed as Aaron stood on his knees, lifting her hips from the bed and entered her slowly, "God damn," he quietly grunted. As he went in deeper, Stella closed her eyes to focus on the delightful groans he confidently let out. "Look at me," he demanded.

Stella opened her eyes and met his, he had a dark look as he kept moving back and forth, as both of his hands rested on her thighs for support, as he increased his thrusts, making Stella move her hips following his pace. "I love the way you fit inside me perfectly, so good," she talked, making him maintain his rhythm.

Six minutes later, he turned her over facing the mattress. He grabbed some more paint while he fucked her from behind, spreading some on her back and ass, admiring how her ass bounced to the rhythm of her thrust as a few dimples that formed on her skin every time he thrusted, making her grip the bed sheets feeling another orgasm growing on her lower stomach, the sensation spreading everywhere.

"Ah god," she whined quietly, closing her eyes with a frown and biting her bottom lip so tightly that it almost disappeared. Aaron increased his violent thrusts, now resting most of his body on her back but still being gentle, grunting on the back of her head as he emptied himself inside her.

Slowing down his pace, he breathed heavily in her ear, "Guess what."

Stella pressed her lips together, moaning as a response.

"I'm still crazy for you."

She laughed, finally opening her eyes, regulating her breathing, "You better be."

Aaron fell next to her, contemplating most of her body painted, running his fingers through her back as she still was lying on her stomach, now looking at him, her hands flat on the bed supporting her face.

She was ready to get up and start cleaning the mess, but Aaron wouldn't let her. "Don't. Let's stay here, for a while."

"Aw you want after sex cuddle?" she mocked him, but he had a different type of serious face that she hasn't really seen before. "I'll go pee first."

"So, did you like the workshop?" she teased once she got back, laying on her stomach once again closer to his warm body.

Aaron put a strand of hair behind her ear, "This is way more fun than running."

"We can do it more often. I can teach you some techniques." Stella's eyes involuntarily started to close, slowing down her blinks but still feeling Aaron staring, "What's up?"

He sighed deep, "I ... nothing."

The truth was, that the three little words that some people often say so casually, almost come out of his mouth.


	17. I love you

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aaron asks Stella to move in, she didn't see it coming.

The weekend after Stella left, Aaron felt a little empty. He already missed her and wasn't sure if he could wait another entire month to see her again, already planning his schedule in his head, even knowing it would most likely change.

Monday morning he got back to work along with everybody, who also had that weekend off. Ever since he started seeing Stella, they all got more weekends off.

Although he was the only one with a sad looking face.

"You painted your house this weekend?" Emily inquired as they all sat at the round table, Garcia ready to present a new case.

"Uh, why?" Aaron asked confused, getting everyone's eyes on him.

"You have some paint there," she said pointing at his neck, looking closer. "Yellow? You painted your apartment yellow? I would've never thought you were a yellow person." Prentiss kept pointing, making him cover his neck subtly with the collar of his shirt.

"The yellow personality type is usually fun and exciting to be around," Reid added with a thin smile on his face, getting a nasty look from his boss.

"And purple," JJ joined them squinting her eyes since she was sitting across from him.

"Now the purple personality-" Spencer began again.

"Reid," Morgan interrupted. No one wanted to hear facts about colors.

"Yes I painted my apartment, yellow and purple," Aaron faltered, clearing his voice nervously, "Whenever you're ready Garcia."

Unlike other days, this time it wasn't hard for him to concentrate on the case. The rest of the day his mind was only focused on solving it, trying to putting the pieces together in a series of murders where the victims were found dead, two days apart from the other, making it look like it was a suicide. But there were still blank spaces.

As usual, the team took the first night off from the case to get some sleep, to be bright and ready for early the next morning.

"So, how are things with your girl Stella?" Rossi asked while Aaron drove to the hotel, along with Prentiss who was silent in the back seat, in her own world looking out the window.

A smile formed in Aaron's face only by hearing her name. "Better than ever," he confessed, his eyes still focused on the road.

"I can see that," Rossi agreed, "She's good for you, you know? Even when you may have been distracted a bit since you started seeing her more often, but you're more relaxed and ... happy. She puts the color in your life, literally," he stated, implying that he probably knew where those stains in his neck came from, which were still visible on his skin after rubbing it with a generous amount of soap.

_ "Any other way to rid of the paint?"  _ He texted Stella once he was installed in his hotel room, getting a response almost immediately.

_ "Taking a bath, ideally with me but by yourself would work too. Just make sure to share that moment. Call me if you do so. I wanna be there." _

**_..._ **

Two months went by without seeing each other in person, since Stella was mostly focused on finishing her internship, as an assistant at an art gallery in LA downtown during the week, and couldn't travel to Virginia on the weekends as normally because her work schedule at the bar was modified to those days only, to match her internship schedule.

Stella was fine with since their FaceTime appointments were almost daily. Or, rather, nightly. But Aaron was craving her, although he could never make the time to scape from Quantico to visit her.

Her job at the gallery consisted on doing some administrative tasks like coordinating small events, as well as providing her creative point of view advising the visitors and assisting the director to manage the gallery's collection.

There were days where she didn't stop, going from the first and second level back and forth non stop, tripping more than once in one day on the stairs, to which she always laughed at. But she still refused to wear flat shoes. She'd even forget to eat, thing that made her almost pass out once while she was selling a painting, but her vision went dark and couldn't continue.

She loved the job though. It was thrilling for Stella the fact that her boss trusted her with all of those tasks, after being intensively trained for it during the first two weeks. She was a fast learner and proved that she was more than qualified to do all of that and that she actually enjoyed it.

Aaron could see the bliss on her face whenever they facetimed, loving to hear her excitedly talk about how there was already a piece of her work displayed at the gallery. He truly felt proud of her.

Later that week, after not talking as often as they wanted due to their work schedules, Aaron decided to spontaneously visit Stella during the weekend, taking advantage of his son being away with his mom and that he had just arrived from a case earlier that afternoon, buying the very first flight he came across on the internet to California.

Aaron knew Stella still worked until late at The Bourbon, so after the taxi dropped him off on the street he knew she liked to park, he looked for her car and waited for her. Peeking inside, he noticed that it wasn't locked and decided to teach her a lesson, hiding in the back seat.

He waited twenty five minutes, almost giving up on his childish plan, until he saw her walking towards her car. Struggling to hide in the back seat, he heard the doors locking then unlocking, following her sitting on her seat. He waited for her to settle, turning the heat and radio on.

"Oh hell yeah," she kind of shouted as Taylor Swift's voice on the radio sang  _ "I knew you were trouble",  _ turning the volume up while putting on some lip balm, humming the words.

Aaron quietly sat back in the middle seat without her feeling his presence, getting close to her ear. "Hey," he said in an intentional very deep voice.

Stella's entire body shivered, letting out a not-ladylike-at-all loud scream that filled the entire space in the car, "AHHH!" she shouted from the top of her lungs grabbing the wheel with both hands, ready to be murdered.

She heard a very familiar laugh coming from the back seat making her turn around on her seat, "Holy motherfucker, you asshole, what is wrong with you!" She blustered in a nervous laugh bringing one hand to her chest, seeing him laugh at her face. "My heart literally stopped dude."

Aaron ceased to laugh, trying to regain some air. "I didn't know you had a voice deeper than mine inside that tiny body of yours."

"Oh now you are a goofball?" she said getting in the backseat with him effortlessly, adjusting on his lap. "Hi, what are you doing here, asshole." Her heart was still pounding out of her chest, but now was less from the scare and more from having her hot boyfriend in her backseat.

Aaron wiped the few tears off the corner of his eyes and grabbed her face, "I missed you. Hi," he muttered, softening his voice while kissing her lips.

"Hi," she whispered in his mouth. "How did you get inside."

"Your car was unlocked. You live in LA, how do you not make sure your car is locked," he reprimanded her, now genuinely worried. "Someone could've easily stolen your car."

"I don't know what I do and don't do anymore. My brain is dry," she complained, blinking slowly.

He put a strand of her behind her ear as his frown softened, "Are you tired?"

"I was," she responded, placing a tender kiss under his ear, "for you, never."

Aaron closed his eyes, enjoying having her body on top of his, the sensation of her breath against his skin, licking his lips as her mouth moved to his neck then back to his mouth.

"Is this your work uniform?" he asked between the kiss, inhaling her soft yet exquisite sweet perfume that made him lose it every time.

"Sort of." She didn't actually have an official uniform, but she decided that the same outfit in different styles was her work clothes, and the thing that she never missed was a black V neck t shirt. "Do you like it?"

"I love it," he grunted moving his wet kisses to her chest,

"Thanks to these babies is how I pay rent," she muttered letting out deep breaths between smiles as Aaron placed kisses down to her prominent but still small cleavage, sucking on her skin.

Stella started to get her hands inside his shirt when Aaron noticed some red and blue intermittent lights illuminating the car from outside, following a short loud siren.

"We'll have to continue this at your place," he suggested, already agitated.

Stella pulled away to look outside, seeing the car patrol passing by, "What, no. That's a thirty minute drive. I know a place, ten minutes from here. You drive," she ordered.

Eight minutes later they were making out in the back seat of Stella's car on the third level of a dark abandoned parking garage.

"Does this place not have surveillance?" he asked while Stella pulled her tight skirt up to her waist.

"I don't know," she teased, "We'll have to be quick."

"Oh I'll be quick. I've missed you like crazy," Aaron grunted as she unbuckled his belt while kissing him. She started to move against his bulge, feeling his big hands on each side of her ass as they kept eating each other's mouths, already fogging the car windows with their heavy breathings.

Stella pulled her panties to the side at the same time Aaron pulled out his dick from his boxers, guiding it to her wet entrance and slowly slipping it in, looking into each others eyes, "Fuck," he groaned in her mouth in sync with Stella's gasp. He slid down on the seat while she leaned forward, holding onto the back of the seat as she slowly started moving up and down.

Aaron hugged her tight by the waist as he pushed hips up and down, following her pace. Stella melted whenever he did that, wanting to be as close to him as possible as he kissed her chest, feeling his groans vibrating on her skin.

Three minutes in and she was already feeling his dick pulsating inside her, "So that much you've missed me, huh" she joked capturing his deep groans in her mouth, kissing him fiercely.

"God," he complained, slowing his thrusts, "I'll make it up to you, I promise." The months without her definitely affected his performance.

"I know you will." Stella chuckled, kissing him once more. She got some wipes from the middle compartment before the mess spreding down her thighs stained her carseats, falling next to him.

They adjusted their clothes back on and opened the windows to let some fresh air in. Stella leaned her back to the door as her legs rested on his thighs, feeling the air hitting her hair.

"Come live with me," he blurted out after being silent for a moment.

Stella sat straight on her seat, not sure if she heard correctly, "What?"

"After you graduate, move in with me, move back to Virginia." He could clearly see and feel her confusion on her body. "Stella, I love you, so much and I can't see myself doing this any longer, just seeing you once a month is not enough for me anymore."

Stella licked her lips and pushed her hair back out of her face to see him better. "Aaron, I..."

He grabbed her face, squeezing her cheeks a little, "Just think about it. I know you've thought about moving back to Quantico because of little Frank, but I want to be a reason too."

She hid her mouth behind her hand, trying to process what the man of her dreams just said.

"Aaron, they just offered me to be a full time assistant at the gallery, after I graduate," she let out a nervous chuckle, "Hotch, they love me there and I feel noticed and appreciated as an artist. I... What you're asking me means a lot. You have no idea how many times I've dreamed about waking up next to you more often. And I did think about moving to Virginia because of my brother. I still am but, not so soon. I thought what we have was good." That last sentence had a little pinch of disappointment. And he read it perfectly.

"It is, it's the best thing," he reassured, adjusting on the seat to face her as he placed his hand on her bare thigh, "You are the best thing that has happened to me in a long time. The things you make me feel are unreal, and stupid, and because of that I need you with me, all the time. And I know I'm being selfish, I know. That's why I'm asking you to think about it. I don't want you to make you choose, I would nev-"

"But you are, making me choose between my career and you," she interrupted, already upset. And she agreed with the fact that he was being selfish.

Stella stepped out of the car, walking to the building railings in front of her, leaving Aaron repentant about what he said. But she needed some air.

She leaned her body on the railings and took a deep breath, hugging herself rubbing her arms as the cold 3 a.m. breeze on her skin gave her goosebumps. "I hate that you asked me that, I hate it," she declared loud enough to make her voice echo in the parking lot, feeling his steps getting closer from behind.

Aaron stood next to her, admiring the few city lights through Stella's shiny eyes. He knew she was mad at him, probably for the first time ever. And the guilt inside his chest started to grow, "I'm sorry."

"You know how much I love you. I know you do. Even when I don't say it, because you are a profiler and study behavior or whatever. But I hate that you're making me choose because I'm not sure if I would choose you."

_ Ouch. _

She didn't mean it to say it like that, but she spoke her mind. She was barely ready to make their relationship official a few months back and he was already asking her to move in.

A big moment of silent passed before Stella spoke again, feeling a knot forming on her throat. "Is this really not enough for you?" She asked shyly.

Aaron eyes lingered on her face wanting her to look at him but she couldn't, "I don't know."

Her eyes became blurry, but she wiped the tears before they even fell, "Then I don't think I can give you more than this."

Aaron truly would've never made her choose. He didn't know about the job offer and he could've taken back what he said after she told him about it, but he didn't.

He had been planning on asking her to move in after her graduation since that morning they went for a run, needing days like those with her more often. He even discussed it with his friend David before visiting her, wanting some old wise advice.

_ "Are you sure that's the best thing? Don't get me wrong but, you're barely home and I think that because you guys see each other only when you have the time, it's the reason your relationship works so well. If she moves in, she will want more time with you, are you sure you'll be able to give her that?" _

Although he wasn't completely wrong, time wasn't the reason she wouldn't move in.

And for the first time, Aaron and Stella realized they weren't in the same page. He wanted more from her, but she wasn't ready for that. And living with him was a huge commitment, something she isn't really good at.


	18. A real goodbye

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After being distant for a while because of Aaron's proposition, he see each other again.

After four years of accumulating thousands of papers on folders to make the perfect portfolio, throwing empty paint containers across her room at 2 a.m. after noticing she had run out, hating to clean paint brushes every single day but realizing that digital art wasn't her favorite thing, forever stained nails and clothes, Stella was officially a professional.

A late bloomer for some since she was graduating at twenty three years old. But she felt fulfilled and new, cutting some bangs and dyeing her long lasting red hair to the darkest shade of brown, ready to start a new chapter in her life.

Although it didn't feel quite real yet. And her mind was focused on somebody else.

"Who's coming?" Izzy asked her while putting on lipstick in front of the full length mirror. The soon to be graduates were getting ready at the blonde's apartment, since it was closer to the campus.

"Just Allison," Stella responded casually, adjusting the strands of her emerald green wrap dress around her waist.

It was her mother who reached out to her two weeks before her graduation day, after being distant for almost a year.  _ "Stella I... I wanted to say what happened, with you and Aaron, and all that situation is already forgotten. I realized that my relationship with you is more important than any other in my life. I need you back," _ she said way too emotional. But if it wasn't for her new boyfriend, JP, they would've never made amends. Allison was too prideful to have done it on her own, and Stella was still scared of her.

JP was all about spirituality and nature.  _ "You have to let that remorse go, my love, otherwise your soul would never be at peace and it affects me too," _ he advised her after Allison told him the whole story. He's got a real way with words and Allison bought whatever he said.

"What about Agent Hotchner," Izzy mocked her.

Stella took a deep breath, sitting in her friends bed next to Misty, who was now officially Izzy's cat. "We've been ... distant."

Izzy turned around exaggeratedly on her heels, "Why didn't you tell me. What happened?"

_ After that night in the parking lot, he drove her home in complete silence. She felt disappointed on herself. Only thinking about how she wasn't enough for him anymore. And he was hurt that he knew she wouldn't choose him. _

_ "I think I should leave," he said once he stopped the car outside her apartment. _

_ That felt like he was saying goodbye, for good, "No, just, come inside with me. It's late, you can leave tomorrow." _

_ In spite of them being hurt with each other, they still went to bed together. "we want different things, Aaron, and at this point of my life I can't give you what you're asking. I can't give you more of me." She confessed as she rested her head on his chest. _

It wasn't a break up, but they barely talked after that.

And it was Aaron the one who was affected the most about it.

"Someone is getting lovesick," Rossi teased him once. He knew about the result of Aaron's preposition to Stella, giving him the  _ 'I told you so' _ look and noticed how that glow he used to have was disappearing. And he wasn't that wrong about Aaron getting lovesick, but his only symptoms were insomnia and lack of concentration. 

During the ceremony, all Stella could think of was how her life was about to change. Not only because she was now a professional, receiving her diploma, but because the man that flipped her world upside down was now probably gone from her life. So the day that was supposed to be happy, ended up making her more sad.

After the commemoration, Allison took her daughter to her favorite restaurant in LA since she hasn't been in the city for a while. Izzy and her parents decided to join them as they considered Stella their own daughter, and Allison had just now thanked them for being there for her daughter during the past four years.

While Izzy talked about her plans for the near future, Allison's eyes were stuck on her daughter's necklace. The necklace Aaron had bought her, and gave her anyway before he left. "That is lovely, was it a gift?" Allison asked carelessly once a moment of silence appeared, pointing at the necklace with her fork.

Stella cleared her voice, "It was a gift, from Aaron actually." She thought that there was no point on keeping at least some information from Allison, now that they made amends.

"Aaron? I thought you said things between you didn't go anywhere," Allison was baffled, not feeling like finishing her salad anymore and taking a long sip of her cold white wine instead.

"It didn't go anywhere, mom," Stella confidently lied, as if the last ten months never happened. "He just sent it to me."

**...**

Meanwhile the BAU team had just solved a case in Seattle that evening, earlier than expected, making Aaron think about not going home that night at all.

"Are you coming?" Rossi asked as they were walking to the jet, noticing that Aaron stopped before going up the stairs.

He could just go back to Quantico and get to a lonely apartment, or buy a plane ticket to LA and try make things better with Stella with the hope of winning her back, or at least to say a proper goodbye.

"I think I'm gonna change my route," he answered looking at the time on his watch.

His friend grinned at him, nodding proudly, "That a boy."

Forty minutes later Aaron was on a plane on his way to LA.

Once he landed he already had a plan. He rented a car, booked a room with a nice view of the city at a hotel he had stayed before and quickly got ready, changing his work clothes for the suit he didn't use, avoiding the tie.

Stella had just arrived from her exhausting afternoon with Allison, ready to go to bed when the doorbell rang.

That familiar ticklish sensation on her stomach appeared as her eyes met his gorgeous face, immediately noticing a cut above his eyebrow.

"Hi," he said, looking at her dimpled smile, both hands on his pocket.

"Hey you. Where-what are you-doing here." Even after all this time, he still made her nervous, especially when he looked like that, way too attractive.

"I realized the other day that we've never been on a real date so," he answered as Stella let him in. "Let me take you out."

"I'd love that," she said shyly, "Good thing I haven't taken my dress off yet," she unintentionally flirted shutting the door behind him.

"Oh it will come off later tonight," he flirted back, but she looked sad, making him get closer to her body, cupping her cheek with his big hand.

Stella gave in and wrapped her arms around his neck, pecking his lips to greet him properly and standing on her toes since her heels were the first thing she let go of that night.

"I missed you so much," he confessed quietly on her lips as the kiss became more intense.

"I've missed you too," she whined, literally trying not to melt, holding his neck tight as her legs became weaker.

Their feelings for each other were stronger than the usual. Neither wanted to let got of the other, both feeling the lack of air as their tongues slowly started to touch. She couldn't help letting out an involuntary moan, which made Aaron react first.

"You should pack a change of clothes, and toiletries," he said out of breath, breaking the two minute make out, placing his hands right above her ass as his eyes lingered over the short pieces of hair on her forehead, then to her eyes that were brighter than the usual.

"We're spending the night somewhere else?" He nodded, "I love when you surprise me."

He gave her one more kiss and she wanted to make it intense again, but he stopped before he couldn't control himself anymore.

"I like the new look by the way," he commented.

"Thanks, I like yours too. What happened there," she pointed at his left brow lifting her own.

While in the car he told her about how he got that cut, minimizing the story of how a bomb blew up, not that close to him but that a lot of stuff flew in the air towards the team, and a piece of glass hit his forehead, insisting that it was nothing, only because she couldn't see the bigger cut on his left bicep yet. The explosion was actually big, and he did escape from it just on time.

Whenever Aaron told Stella about his cases, her stomach would tighten, not quite used to picturing him in the middle of a shooting or in any other dangerous situation, biting her lip from the inside, a habit Aaron knew she had when something upsetted her, "I'm fine," he insisted as he parked once again inside the hotel.

The same place also had a very well reviewed restaurant, in which Aaron had already made the reservation for two, before picking her up.

As they walked in the restaurant, Stella walking behind Aaron as he guided her by the hand, it was like everyone's eyes were on them, making them both look at each other confused. They did look very attractive but that's never happened to them, getting people's look. Women looked at Stella almost with jealousy after looking at Aaron for too long.

"I think you look way to hot tonight," she mentioned quietly as they sat on their table.

"I'm pretty sure they were looking at you," he contradicted. He truly never realized the way women look at him. But Stella wasn't the jealous type, making her feel even more attracted to him, as if it was possible.

They ate their dinner quietly, but it wasn't an awkward silence at all. It was that enjoyable type of quiet, because they knew what the other was thinking. They always did. And at that moment they knew it was their last time together. If Stella would've said anything, she would've let out all of her feelings while bursting into tears, so she decided to enjoy the moment, looking at him eating his dessert.

"The things I would do to you in that dress of yours," Aaron commented softly. Now whenever they ate brownies with ice cream, he'd get turned on.

Stella licked her spoon clean, making eye contact with him, "Oh please, tell me. I'm all ears."

Aaron rubbed his fingers against his thumb, a thing he did all the time that made Stella feel all types of things for some reason, "I thought you liked it when I surprised you," he teased her.

She scooted her chair closer to him and slid one hand under the table, running it from down up through his thigh, stopping at the outline of his already growing bulge. "Right. But just so you know, Aaron," she said looking up to him, almost whispering, "you can do whatever you want with me. To me."

Aaron cleared his voice, his eyes stuck on her mouth, "It's good to know. I'll keep that in mind for later."


	19. A real goodbye: part II

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> one last kiss.

As soon as the hotel door shut behind them, Stella let her purse fall on the floor as Aaron pushed her against the wall, grabbing her fiercely by her waist. Her arms wrapped around his neck enjoying his tender touch of the tip of his nose touching her cheeks, Aaron inhaling her soft sweet perfume one last time.

Stella could already feel her legs wanting to give up feeling his hands moving to her thighs under her dress, gripping them tight. His touch was something Stella craved the most about him whenever they are away. Feeling him wanting her so bad.

"I'm gonna miss you so much," she whimpered, already feeling her heart hurting.

"Shhh. Don't think about it," he whispered in her ear before kissing under it.

Still standing at the entrance, their moist lips finally met, soft and slowly, increasing the intensity with each one as their breathings became heavier.

Trying not to stumble in the dark room, they walked to the perfectly neat bed. Aaron sat on the edge grabbing her by the thighs once again as she adjusted on his lap, immediately moving her hips against him needing some friction. He took his jacket off, tossing it to the side not caring where it landed, and moved his wet kisses to her her chest at the same time he slowly undid the knot of her dress. His warm big hands ran across her back, gently sucking the uncovered skin of her breasts, wanting to take them off her bra.

"Do you love it when I play with your nipples?" He asked making his voice vibrate on her chest. Stella was so turned on, unable to say any words, she just nodded letting out a whine out from the back of her throat. Aaron took her bra off without needing to take her dress off too, bringing one nipple to his mouth while the other tit got massaged with his hand, making Stella squirm.

Feeling Aaron's tongue stimulating her nipples made her lose it, every time, he knew exactly what to do to make her come just by sucking them and pulling on her piercings with his teeth, doing small circles with his tongue and blowing every now and then on the sensitive skin. Stella leaned slightly back, supporting both hands on his thighs as he kept moving from one breast to the other, licking and kissing them in the most loving and desiring way.

Her breathings became short and violent, letting out soft moans, already feeling what seemed like a never ending orgasm as he over stimulated her.

Aaron intensified his tongue movements, sucking on her hard nipples. She tried hard not to be so loud. But he loved when she was loud, so he kept going. Stella's body almost gave up, bu he held her by her lower back.

He waited for Stella's breathings to slow down, placing tender kisses on her chest. "Are you good?"

Stella licked her lips, pressing them together, "Fuck no, but it the best way possible." Aaron smiled kissing her chest one more time before catching her mouth again, as she moaned against his breath. "Please fuck me Aaron. All night. I don't want to sleep ever again," Stella pleaded.

They both wanted a never-ending night.

"Your wish is my command."

Aaron was so hard, wanting to be inside her badly, but didn't obey her just yet. Instead he told her to wait and went to fill the bathtub letting the water run at the minimum pressure.

He then coming back to the bedroom, seeing Stella sitting on the edge of the bed waiting for him. "Why are you just sitting there," he asked, softening his voice, standing in front of her.

Stella gave him an innocent look, biting her bottom lip. "I'm nervous." She truly was, but she also felt speechless.

Aaron smiled at her, bringing his hand to her cheek, caressing it with his thumb and slowly bringing it closer to her lips, running his fingers from the bottom lip to the top, parting her mouth open. Stella held his forearm as she took his finger inside her mouth, closing her eyes, sucking his thumb and involuntarily letting out a soft moan. "Please," she begged once again.

"Stand up," he ordered tenderly. He guided her holding her hand to the full length mirror and stood behind her, looking at their reflection and slowly letting her dress fall to the floor. "Look at you, so pretty." Aaron pushed himself against her, Stella feeling his hard dick on her lower back. She tilted her head to the side while he placed wet kisses on her neck with one hand on her stomach as the other got inside her panties from the front. "You're so wet," he whispered in her ear. He spread her wetness on his fingers, teasing her entrance, enjoying the small whines and short breaths Stella let out, mesmerized by their reflection. Aaron then brought his soaked fingers to his mouth, tasting her so good while making eye contact through the mirror.

_ Fuck. _

Stella turned around and captured his mouth his hers fiercely, placing one hand around his waist as the other touched his dick above his pants. She quickly unbuttoned his pants and pulled them down, as he watched her through the mirror crouching in front of him.

Looking up at him, she pulled his dick out of the boxers and traced long lines with her tongue everywhere on his length, from down to his tip. He placed one hand on her head, gently pushing her tiny pieces of dark hair behind her ear. He will miss that point of view. The way her cheeks and nose always flushed as she sucked his dick, almost with passion. But she love doing it, making him feel good and hearing his grunts was the best thing for her.

Although she was enjoying it, she needed him inside her more. She switched her mouth for her hand, giving him a soft hand job at the same time she kissed his lower stomach, slowly standing back up to meet his mouth again. "Please," she begged for the third time.

Aaron quickly took his shoes off, pulling out his pants with his feet as they walked back to the bed.

She laid on her back watching him getting fully undressed, then adjusting himself in between her open legs. Without entering her yet, he looked at her eyes.

"I'm gonna miss you too." Then he kissed her.

Stella grabbed his dick with one hand and guided it to her throbbing pussy , playing with his tip on her clit, moving it up and down. He pulled away from her lips and slid in with one big deep thrust. She gasped in his mouth, then gasped again as he began his slow hip movements.

She's heard so many times that the missionary position was the most boring, she has even experienced it herself with other guys before him. But with Aaron, every time, she felt in outer space. His closeness, how their bodies met everywhere, looking into his eyes as he breathed into her mouth between the intense kisses. It was her favorite thing if she was honest. It was intimate and she always felt a unique connection between the two.

Even when he was rough, but right now he was soft, moving his hips at the perfect pace, increasing his speed more and more as her nails dug in his skin.

"I love you," she whispered in his mouth, for the first time she said it directly to his face, regretting not saying it before. Now that she knew he was almost gone from her life, she loved him more than ever.

"I know you do." He stopped his pace for a moment, staying inside her feeling her tightening around his dick. Pulling her hair out of her face, he began to move his hips again.

"Aaron?" she moaned after a few moments.

"mmm."

"The bath," she laughed as she heard water falling on the bathroom floor from far.

"Shit," he laughed too, resting his forehead on hers, "I'll be right back."

He quickly stood up and went to check the bathroom. It had just started overflowing.

Once he handled the situation, he got back and laid next to Stella who was now facing him. "Where were we," he murmured kissing her lips as their bodies got closer.

Both laying on their sides facing each other, Aaron entered her once again making her rest her leg on top of his thigh.

His hands were all over her, both moving against each other at the same pace. "I love you," he said, putting a pillow behind her lower back and flipping her on her back once again.

Ready to finish, he increased his thrusts, Stella feeling her intense orgasm growing and hugging him tight as a dug himself inside her resting his head on her neck, one last time before emptying himself inside her groaning in her mouth.

"You're trembling," he said out of breath.

She was shaking trying not to cry right after sex. How embarrassing it would be.

But it was Aaron and she had every reason to cry.

They were letting each other go and that was the kinder and most painful thing they could do for the other.


	20. A real goodbye: Part III

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> How stupid

The next morning Stella woke up feeling her stomach rumbling and her muscles sore. The exquisite smell of hot coffee and toasts invaded her senses, making her mouth water and the instant feeling of her tired muscles made her barely sit on the bed, squinting her eyes not wanting to see sunlight just yet, even when the digital clock on the night stand marked almost eleven.

As she wanted, they ended up making love until six in the morning, or more like Aaron made love to her because she got too tired after the third round,  _ "I can eat you out all night if you let me," _ he said, and of course Stella accepted. Although she was used to going to sleep after four, she still felt exhausted in the most desirable way.

She looked to the empty left side of the bed, expecting to see Aaron, instead she heard the shower running, immediately wanting to join him and take one last shower together. But that would made their goodbye harder, so she decided to control herself and get dressed with the big shirt she packed and walked to the bathroom, covering her eyes before stepping in knowing that the shower had a glass door.

"I just need to brush my teeth," she said loudly over the running water.

Aaron was already done, turning the shower off, "Good morning," he greeted with the biggest smile, even when she wouldn't see it. He got the towel near him and wrapped it around his waist, walking to Stella who still had her eyes covered, bringing the wet tooth brush to her mouth. "Did you get any sleep," he asked, already knowing the answer.

"I just woke up five minutes ago," she babbled with her mouth full of foaming tooth paste.

As for Aaron, he didn't sleep at all. Not because he wasn't tired, he definitely was but he didn't want sleep and watched  _ her _ do it instead. Remembering every moment they spent together, from the second they locked eyes that night when they first met. He never thought that that young woman with dark eyeshadow, red hair and covered in tattoos was the love of his life. But she was. He now knew she was, because he's never felt this much pain even before saying goodbye. Not even when he signed his divorce papers.

He squeezed her hips with his hands, making her finally uncover her eyes, looking at him through the reflection in front of her. She leaned forward, spiting on the sink before looking at him again. "Hi."

"Hi." His arms moved around her waist, pulling himself closer to her and pecking her cheek. All she could do was close her eyes and just feel his warm body wetting her shirt from behind. God she's gonna miss every little thing he does.

"Please get dressed. Or I'm gonna jump on top of you and we'll never leave this hotel room ever again."

He breathed her perfume closing his eyes and nodded in agreement, stepping away, "Fine."

After breakfast, they went downstairs while holding hands on the elevator and did the check out. It wasn't until they were in the car that it truly hit her. It was all her fault. Why wouldn't she choose him over a stupid job. There's always a job out there, and she will never have a love like the one she's had with him, ever again. He's the love of her life and was letting him go.

Trying to hold her tears on their way to her apartment, she kept looking out the car window, sniffing quietly so that he wouldn't notice.

As if.

"Stella look at me," he ordered, stopping the car by the side of the road and turning on the blinking lights.

"No, keep going, just take me home I'm fine," she snapped. He opened her mouth to speak but stopped in the middle of it, he didn't want to push her to talk.

Fifteen minutes later he was parked inside her building parking garage. And she still couldn't stop her tears. She wasn't really crying, no sob or whimper came out. They were just uncontrollable tears running down her face.

They waited in silence, until she was ready to speak again.

"Am I really doing this?" Her voice barely came out, angrily wiping her never ending tears. "Are we really just ... this? like is there no more of us?"

She felt so stupid at that moment, doubting her own decision.

Aaron clenched his jaw and swallowed his pain of seeing her cry. "You know I still want you, but-"

"Don't say that," she whimpered, "God it's all my fault." She was still unable to stop her tears, covering her face with her hands. "Is it too late? To say that you are all I want?"

"Stella."

"Fuck the job, I don't want it, I'm choosing you now. I wanna be with you."

He tried so hard not to break, realizing what he did to her, "No, Stella, you're not thinking straight right now. What I did was so wrong. You don't want to move in, I should've never asked you. I'm never home and I don't want to disappoint you by not being there when you want me to. You don't want a life with me."

_ I should've never asked you. _

He instantly regretted his choice of words, Stella looking away from him. "What I'm saying is, this is the only way for us to be ... in good terms."

A silence invaded both of them. Stella thinking that he was right but wishing that things would've been different, even wishing they'd never started anything and only leaving it in a one night stand. It would've been easier. Then hating herself for wishing that. Their love story was the most exciting and beautiful thing she's experienced, but not knowing that she could love that much ruined her.

"Okay. This is it then," she stated taking a sharp breath, now looking at  _ his _ watery eyes.

He adjusted on his seat to face her and cupped her face with one hand, Stella copying his movements and placing her hand on top of his, as she gave him a tender kiss on his palm. "You be the best at what you do," he began, making her even more emotional, "Be outstanding."

"I will," she promised looking at those kind sad looking eyes.

"Goodbye."

Stella held her breath, her eyes not wanting to leave his face. Her lips curved upwards but her eyes were full of regret, and quickly stepped out of the car, breathing in deep as she rushed to the elevator without looking back, feeling his eyes watching her walk away.

But he needed one more hug. One last kiss.

He stepped out of the car too and ran behind her, "Stella!" He shouted making her stop before pressing the elevator button.

She turned around, seeing him walk fast towards her and waited until he got close enough, "What are you doing," she asked, almost begged with a frown on her face. He was making this more difficult for her.

"Nothing."

He wrapped his arms tight around her waist, hiding his face on her neck, breathing her in as Stella hugged him back, placing her hand on the back of his head.

"Just promise me, this is not the end. It can't be," she pleaded. "We're so stupid."

"We are," he chuckled, "I love you."

"I love you too." She pulled away and placed a soft long kiss on his lips, both closing their eyes. "Okay go, you're gonna miss your flight," she let out a small laugh wiping her tears, getting a few more kisses from him on her cheek.

He forced himself to let go and rushed back to the car, waving at her as he drove away.

And the few tears he tried so hard not to spill in front of her, finally came out on the plane, on his way back to Virginia. He's only had his heart broken once, the time he found out his ex wife was cheating. But that was a different type of heartbreak as the one he was currently going through.

Stella didn't mean to hurt him and he knew she was just as shattered as him. And it was a reasonable heartbreak, to avoid ruining their hypothetical future together. So the result was only one. He had to let her go.

Although it felt like they were on a break only, for the both of them. They didn't officially break up, just like they never really asked the other to make their relationship official in the beginning. Both situations just happened. And like that, they ended.

**...**

"How did it go?" Rossi asked Aaron, first thing the next morning.

Aaron put his pen down and adjusted on his chair, looking at his friend, "honestly, I don't know."

"How's that."

"We ended things, our relationship, but I don't feel like we really did," he explained.

"You left an open ending," his friend commented.

"What?"

"You both still want to be together."

"I do and she wants too," he sighed deep, "but it was never gonna work out. Us."

"Let me help you understand, from everything you've told me. You both still want to be with the other, but your lives are too different and, from what I understood these past months, the only thing that kept you alive was the long distance thing, but you don't want do keep doing that."

"No. It hurts too much."

"But, Hotch, she will grow up, grow old and eventually will settle. Don't give up on her."

"And do what, just wait for her ten years?" He spat, gripping hard the paper in from or him, "My job it's always gonna be the same and I don't want to disappoint her too. Doing what I do already ended my marriage. She doesn't deserve that, I don't deserve her."

He would wait for her though, an entire life if necessary.

But their paths never crossed.

The team had so many cases in California after that, Aaron always tempted to check up on her, maybe just see each other for a moment and ask her how she was doing. But he never called or texted her. And she never got to know the many times he was so close to her. How they almost bumped into each other once, while he was interviewing museums and art gallery owner's because of a freak who was painting with human blood.

She always wondered that, if he ever travelled to LA because of work,  _ would he call me? _

Although deep down she didn't want him to, because she would tell him to ask her again, to move in, and go back to him in a heart beat, leave everything behind and settle for a shitty job in Quantico just to be with him, no matter his job.

Then the days passed by, Stella still working at the gallery and part time at the bar. Having existential crisis at one in the morning without anyone to comfort her and tell her that everything was going to be fine. That it was all written already, her future.

Soon the days became months, and they still missed the other like the very first day.


	21. Memories

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They found happiness in the little moments they had,  
> both of them wanted to remember the other that way.  
> And when they experienced a major trauma,  
> going back to their moments helped them get through the pain.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *WARNING: sexual assault scene.* Read on at your own.  
> At the very end there is a summary, if you decide to skip this chapter

**_They found happiness in the little moments they had, both of them wanted to remember the other that way._ **

**_And when they experienced a major trauma, going back to their moments helped them get through the pain_.**

**...**

Rule number one: never take a drink from a stranger. By working at The Bourbon, Stella is always alert, looking after other girls and paying attention to their drinks, even when they don't ask her to. She knows how to be careful.

And yet her head was spinning, her lids felt like they were being weighed down by a thousand bricks and she wasn't able to keep her eyes open for more than two seconds. Her limbs didn't belong to her, she wanted to raise her arms to push the man away from her, but they wouldn't respond. Although some of her senses were wide awake, she could smell alcohol and the familiar humidity smell of the employees room, and his touch, felt like sandpaper on her skin. "Noel?" Stella asked.

"Come on Stella," he grunted in her ear, "You've been single for so long, I bet you're needy. Let's celebrate your last day here, I've been wanting you for the longest time now."

"What?"

His strong breath on her face turned into a disgusting taste on Stella's mouth, feeling a gag forming on her throat. The tight grip of his on her body pushed her against the cold locker behind her, his repulsive lips on her neck were something Stella wished she never felt and his thick beard was already irritating her skin. "What did you do to me wh-what, did you drug me you fucking bastard," she barely said, or rather, thought she said because her tongue wouldn't react and only loose words came out.

_ How did I get here? _

_ "I can't believe you're leaving me," Noel said, pouting his lips. It was Stella's last day working at The bourbon and the both of them were finishing cleaning the place. While he put the clean cups on the shelf behind the counter, Stella finished wiping tables and mopping the floor. _

_ "I know," she responded, pouting her lips too, "But I have to, the gallery finally promoted me and well, they're offering more money so I can't reject that offer." _

_ "Let's have one last drink then," he proposed, already taking out two just cleaned shot glasses and an almost empty tequila bottle. _

_ Stella stopped mopping the floor and rested her tired body on the mop handle, "fine, but just one," she gave in, pointing at him. _

_ "For you, Stella," Noel cheered. He watched her bring the short glass to her mouth and drink it completely. _

_ "That's fucking disgusting by the way," she wrinkled her nose as she sticked her tongue out, shaking her head a little. _

"Hey hey, I'll be quick," he grunted as he violently turned her around, pushing her face against the locker, thing that made her hit her cheekbone hard on a big lock.

"You're hurting me," she finally cried out, trying to let go of him but he was twice her size and he was already lifting her skirt and ripping down her underwear, "Don't. Please, stop," she murmured. Then, her body froze.

"We've fucked before. Don't act like you don't want me."

Helplessness took over her mind, feeling dirty, weak and numb, all at the same time, too much for her to process that it became overwhelming. She held her breath, blocking everything else while staring at the closed door, trying to think of anything that would take her somewhere else, far away.

**...**

_ The way he always hugs me from behind when I least expect it is my favorite feeling, and how I know he has to lean down to do it because I'm too short, warms my heart, "I'm definitely a better cook than you," he said as he hugged me from behind while I prepared omelette for breakfast, just like he wanted. _

_ "Dude, no. There is now way, you wish you were as good as me," I responded, making him laugh loud. God I love his laugh. _

_ "Why do you keep calling me dude." _

_ His very deep morning voice against my ear made my cheeks burn, but I pretended that I didn't blush and kept cooking, adding some mushrooms and baby spinach, "Why not. It's either that or 'bro', choose." _

_ "Oh I've heard you calling me 'baby'." _

_ "That's different though, I only use that word when your face is in between my-" _

_ "Okay," he interrupted, putting a strand of hair behind my ear, "That is way too overcooked." _

_ "Excuse me? Sir, I-" _

_ "Ah, I like that one better. Sir," he teased, making me take my eyes off the perfectly cooked omelette as I turned the stove off. I looked at his face over my shoulder, and he was already looking at me, at my lips, like he always does. I swear I melt. Every time. _

_ "Yeah, there is no way I'm calling you that ever again." _

**_*** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** ***_ **

As he took a sip of the scotch he just poured, something he definitely has to stop doing every time he arrives from a hard case, Aaron sensed he wasn't alone in his apartment. A presence behind him stiffed his body and the sound of someone cocking the hammer of a gun made him turn around.

"You should've made a deal," the reaper growled, firing his gun centimeters away from Aarons head, but the loud sound didn't even made him flinch. "Is this part of my profile? You can't show me fear?"

"If you don't see fear maybe it's because I'm not afraid of you," Aaron barked back, looking right at the man's eyes behind the black mask, already feeling his blood boiling.

"You said that like you actually meant it," Foyet taunted, "How's my friend agent Morgan."

"Are you here to kill me or are you here to play games."

"You tell me, enlighten me about my behaviour," he responded, taking off his mask.

Aaron felt pure rage and his only reaction to seeing the face of the man who's been haunting him since he escaped from jail, was throwing the first punch full of anger, instantly receiving one back which made him lose his balance, falling to the floor. He tried to reach for his gun, but a hard kick on his face wouldn't let him, following the sting of the reapers gun hitting his head. Aaron's head was pounding as his vision dazed.

"So tell me, would I use this," Foyet started, standing on top of him, showing his knife and stabbing Aaron without hesitation on his stomach. He felt the cold weapon get through his skin and almost getting to his organs, feeling how it was burning him slowly. Then another stab came, making him dazed once again.

**...**

_ I felt her eyes on me before she could say a word, I swear I can feel her thoughts sometimes. "Hotch?" She asked quietly. _

_ I can't help but chuckle a little, "mmm." _

_ "Can I clean your apartment?" _

_ I rolled over on my side, opening my eyes and meeting hers, that were wide awake, bigger than they usually were. I had to smush my lips on her cheek to say good morning, as I pulled her body closer to me. "Are you calling me messy?" _

_ "Uh yes," she hesitated, "You can at least get a small shelf or some folders to organize those hundreds of papers you have on your diner table." _

_ She rubbed our noses together, bringing the bed covers closer to our faces like she always did when she doesn't want to get up yet, wanting to keep the warmth of our bodies. _

_ "Believe it or not, I have all of that very well organized." _

_ "Please?" _

_ "You are a neat freak." _

_ "I know. Take advantage of it." _

**_*** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** ***_ **

She's never really been the type of person that gets freaked out about dirt and germs, but at that moment all she thought about was how the cold floor felt sticky and rough under her cheek, confused as to why she was laying on it face down, and thinking it was her fault she was getting dirty because she always mopped only the floor the clients get to see, stopping right before the employees room.

As her head began to regain consciousness, the shame appeared. She was feeling dirty on the inside too, unable to move or breathe properly as her entire body broke into anxious shaking. Stella realized how she was all alone, not only in that dark smelly room, but at that moment in her life. Allison was at the other side of the country, Izzy wasn't in LA anymore, and the only friend she thought she had, ended up hurting her badly, in the most soul shattering way. The trust she had was crushed in a matter of minutes. She always thought he'd be the one she would run to if something like that happened to her, he was supposed to protect her from that type of pigs that showed up at the bar, but he was just like them.

Then her limbs started to respond. She carefully lifted her torso from the floor and sat up, looking at her surroundings. The first morning light was already peeking through the small ceiling window above her, thing that told her she's been laying there for a while but she'd lost track of time. The manager could arrive any minute, he couldn't find her like that, no one could. Stella looked around searching for her phone which somehow ended up by the door. That was when she finally stood up, with weak legs as she pulled her ripped skirt down. The phone screen was cracked, but she could see a message from Allison who texted her around the time she was supposed to end her last shift.

_ "How was your last day?"  _ She had texted at 4:21 LA time.

Fuzziness invaded Stella's eyes as the corner of her lips turned downwards, looking down at the screen while a few tears dropped on it. And although she could barely see, she still typed a response.

_ "It was smooth,"  _ she texted back. At 5:48. 

It was the shame and the  _ 'I accepted the drink so it was my fault and no one would believe me' _ the thing that stopped her from telling the truth. Instead she grabbed all of her stuff and drove to her apartment blinking only a few times during the thirty minute drive. She was enraged and all she said to herself was how stupid she was.

As soon as she arrived to her apartment, her safe place, where only beautiful thing have happened, she threw the clothes she was wearing into the trash, stepped into the shower and sat on the bath, letting her tears blend with the hot water running over her head.

**...**

_ I could watch him do anything all day and never get bored, whatever he does makes me lose my breath because I can't focus on anything else. "You're shaving," I said, leaning on the door frame. _

_ He turned around, stopping what he was doing, doing an 'isn't it obvious' face, "Uh, yeah." _

_ "Can I do it?" _

_ "Shave your face? or mine?" He teased me and my smile grew bigger. _

_ "Yours. I already shaved mine," I play along as I walked up to him. _

_ "Sure, why not," he accepted, with a smirk on his face. _

_ "You'll have to sit though." _

_ "Or ... you can sit here." He firmly moved me by my waist against the sink countertop and lifted me by my thighs, standing between my legs so that his face was to the same level as mine. _

_ "Uh yeah, this is better." His face is so close to mine, but we don't kiss. _

_ He handed me the razor and I continued where he left of, delicately trying not to cut his gorgeous face. "Am I doing good?" _

_ "Yeah, you're being too gentle though," he responded, always looking at my lips. _

_ "But I don't wanna hurt you." _

_ He put both hands on each side of me on the counter, supporting his body, "Just, put a bit more pressure." _

_ I did as he said, and I wished I didn't, "Shit, you're bleeding now." _

_ He looked himself in the mirror behind me and smiled, "Only a little, keep going." _

**_*** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** ***_ **

Four of his colleagues stood around the hospital bed once he opened his eyes, their worried faces were only looking at him.

"Where am I?" Aaron asked in a weak voice, feeling his throat dry.

"In the hospital," Rossi responded.

He exhaled sharp, aware of the reason as to why he was laying on a hospital gurney. "How did I get here."

"Foyet drove you," Morgan answered.

"Do you remember what happened," Emily asked, triggering his memories.

Slowly, some images of the night before start to appear but he tries to erase them, focusing on the present only. "What did he take."

"What do you mean," Rossi asked as they all looked at each other.

"The reaper always takes something from his victims, do we know what he took."

"There was a page missing from your day planner, in the address section, the b's," Emily remembered. His stomach tightened, but not because of the wounds he had, but because he knew what was on that page.

"What did he leave."

"I don't know," Prentiss responded uneasy.

"He also leaves something with his victims."

"I looked over your whole apartment, nothing felt out of place."

"Where are my clothes."

Emily quickly got the bag of personal belongings for him, pulling out the bloody clothes as Aaron reached for a small yellow envelope, taking out the badge which had a blood stained picture of Jack and Haley inside it. And he knew Foyet was already after them.

"Haley's maiden name is Brooks, I always listed her in the b's in my personal information in case it fell into the wrong hands, he nows where they live."

Distress took over everyone. One of them was hurt, and now family was involved.

As Morgan, JJ and Rossi left to take care of the situation, Emily stayed with Aaron to keep him company and perhaps get more information, but remembering all over again threw his vital signs through the roof.

"They're safe," Emily let him know after he stabilized. She walked into the room again, seeing relief in his face for the first time that day. "Hotch? What about Stella? Doesn't her last name start with a b too? The reaper must know about her," she hesitated. He hadn't talked about her since over a year and she wasn't sure if that was a sensitive topic for him.

He shook his head. There was the chance that Foyet knew about her, but Aaron knew he would never get to her, "No, I don't have her information. She's safe."

**...**

_ "So, I'm your boyfriend now?" I teased her. I couldn't tell if the red on her face was because of the stop lights of the car in front of us or because she was blushing. Either way, she looked adorable, biting her bottom lip trying not to smile. _

_ "Eyes on the road my man." And her voice, she always made it deeper when she feels embarrassed. But I didn't want her to feel that way. _

_ "The traffic will keep us here in the car for a while, talk to me." _

_ She exhaled softly, "I guess you are." _

_ "Did you not mean it?" I asked while slightly pressing on the gas, only advancing a few feet. "It's okay if you didn't, I don't mind." _

_ "It's not that, I uh can we talk about it, when we get home?" _

_ "Yeah, anything you want," I smiled. She called my apartment home. _

_ "Perfect _ , because I love this song," she said, turning the radio up.

**_*** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** ***_ **

Just when Stella needed to buy something quick, the the drugstore down her apartment building was full of people, at nine in the morning, like never before. Or maybe it was always like that but now she had just realized since she was paranoid and ashamed about what she was about to buy. But why? She was doing the only right thing she felt she was able to do. She's never bought the morning-after pill before, and never thought she would. And that thought of the smallest possibility of getting pregnant was eating her. She didn't recall if the guy used protection so she wouldn't take a risk.

**...**

"Have you wondered why I haven't gotten pregnant?" I asked him, only because we were almost done grocery shopping in the personal care isle and the flavored condoms caught my attention, we've never really used those, condoms in general.

"No, not really, you're on the pill so, should I?" He said quietly.

"No, we're good. Although I feel like I might be... infertile."

His confused face was funny, "What are you saying."

"I mean, you always... you know ... inside me and the pills aren't a hundred percent safe, there's always the chance," I explained looking around the store so that no one was hearing our conversation.

"I guess," he agreed, "Do you want to know if you are able to have kids?"

"No, I don't mind, I don't really see myself being a mom so it might be a blessing."

"You would be a great mom though."

"I'm not giving you a child Hotch."

**...**

While Aaron had all of his friends looking after him and his family, taking care of his situation, Stella was all alone. She wanted it that way, and didn't want to hurt her mother and Izzy by telling them what had happened to her.

They would've made her report the incident and she didn't want to relieve it ever again.

So she kept quiet, until Noel dared to show up at her work two days later.

"What the fuck are you doing here," Stella shouted as soon as she saw him walking in through the glass door.

"We need to talk," he said quietly.

"Excuse me? we need to- okay. Talk," she began, "Why don't you tell everybody here. Ma'am listen to this guy," she grabbed a client by her arm roughly, bringing her closer to him, "Tell them how you drugged me, and fucking raped me in that filthy locking room and left me laying on the floor like trash!" She wanted to kill him with her bare hands.

Her manager came downstairs from her office, hearing Stella's screams. And right before he got where the scene was, Stella punched Noel in the face, taking advantage that she wasn't alone in a room with him anymore, and that she had full control over her body.

"What's going on here." The manager said, his hands on his waist. Stella immediately grabbed her hand, feeling her knuckles sore already, and looking at her boss straight in the eyes,

"I can explain."

"Stella. Come with me. Now." He gave her the deadliest stare, "I apologize everyone, please keep enjoying."

Security took Noel out from the gallery, and no one really payed attention when Stella confessed how he raped her. The guests kept looking at the paintings and the guard actually took care of Noel's bleeding nose, as if he was the victim.

"What the hell was that," the manager asked angrily as Stella stood in front of the desk.

"He wasn't a client he-he hurt me, he deserved that." She defended herself and maintained her professional composure, both hands behind her back.

"I don't care, Stella, what he did to you. You made a scene in front of our valuable clients. I just promoted you, that doesn't mean you can do whatever you want. I thought you said you were professional."

A knot formed on her throat, but she quickly swallowed it as she breathed in deep. "I am, sir I-"

"And you showed up late today."

"If you let me expla-" She began, but never got to finish.

"You're fired."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Basically what happens in this chapter is that both go through a big trauma, while Hotch faces Foyet (the stabbing at his apartment thing), Stella went through her own trauma, being sexually assaulted on her last day of working at the bar (since she got promoted and didn't need a second job anymore), by her friend Noel, someone she thought she could trust. 
> 
> Throughout the chapter both have flashbacks, remembering little conversations/situations that helped them cope with their bad experiences.
> 
> At the end, happens what normally happens in the chapter of criminal mind on Hotch's situation. On Stella's side, she decides not to tell anyone about what she went through, until Noel shows up at her work at the gallery two days later, thing that made her cause a scene in right in front of the clients. After that she gets called by her boss, who calls her out about being late for the past days and in consecuense she gets fired.


	22. Nina

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nina, goes missing. Stella finds herself in need for help, Aaron's help.

What happened to Stella threw her into a dark hole. The darkest place she's been. After she got fired she never wanted to see or step into an art gallery ever again. That job was the reason she got assaulted in the first place. She hated art galleries, she hated painting. That job was also the reason she ended her relationship, the only good thing she had. And she tortured herself thinking of how different things, her life, would've been if she had accepted Aaron's proposition, if she hadn't thought about herself only and had chosen him. She undervalued everything good she had.

And then she had nothing.

Settling for a random job was Stella's only option, that was when she got hired at an advertising agency as an illustrator. And there wasn't a day she didn't want to leave LA forever. All of her good memories there were ruined, but if she moved to anywhere else, people would've asked questions, Allison would've wondered why she left just when she got promoted. And her mother could never know about what happened to her.

So she kept it together. The job wasn't that bad. And she actually enjoyed drawing on a screen better than on paper. Now her art instead of being in galleries, they were in magazines and websites and did her own thing selling drawings on the internet, which made her fall in love with digital art. Although the only bad outcome of it was that she had to wear permanent glasses.

There were good people at Stella's new job, and she made a real friend there, Julia, the assistant manager and the one that hired her. She was older than Stella, and very motherly towards her, and the only one that knew about her assault. Somehow she ended up telling Julia after a night out, at a bar, thing that triggered something inside Stella, and her new friend got it right away, because that bad experience happened to her too when she was a bit younger than Stella.

"Sadly is more common than we think. One in five women have been victims of sexual assault at some point in their lives," the curl-haired woman explained as they had a soft drink, "But it does get better, we get through it. I never thought I would ever be in a relationship because I feared every man I was alone with. But look at me now, I've been married for five years with the love of my life, who makes me feel safe and doesn't see me as a broken person, because we're not broken. And I have a three year old daughter who lights up my days. It does get better, Stella, don't let that son of a bitch ruin things for you." ... "A fact that always gave me comfort and hope at the beginning was that the lifespan of cells is 7 years, so in 7 years all of the cells in your body have been replaced which means that after that time the attacker has never touched you."

Somehow Julia saved her. If it wasn't for her, Stella would've never gotten a transfer to Virginia after a year working at the agency. That usually takes years to achieve, but Stella worked hard and Julia took advantage of her relationship with their boss.

"Stella would make an excellent asset to our team in Virginia."

And she left LA to never go back.

Although the new job wasn't in Quantico, it was only an hour drive from her apartment. So she visited Allison and Frankie often, and they did the same, which ended up reuniting them all at Stella's new apartment more than once.

"The kid looks just like you when you were a toddler," Allison commented as soon as she meet Frankie, who wouldn't stop playing with her long hair.

"He loves you Allison," Nina mentioned with a big smile on her face. Both woman who birthed a child from the same man actually became good friends, thing that made Nina the happiest because she had more people in her life.

And since Stella moved to Virginia, there wasn't a day were she didn't think about Aaron, curious as to what he could be possibly be doing. There were thousands of times in which she picked up her phone, searching for his name at the very end of her messages, just to know how he was doing or to let him know that she was living in Virginia, but she never dared to press send.  _ What was the point _ , she thought, it's been two years and he's probably moved on already and she did too, or forced herself to.

But in reality, he thought about her more than he wanted. He loved her the same, with the difference that he got used to living with the pain of not having her around. He still saw her everywhere, and in everything. Whenever The Cranberries sounded in the radio he had to quickly change the station, getting the looks from his coworkers. The grumpy Agent Hotchner was back and became more of a workaholic than he ever was. Then the death of his ex wife happened, and all of his attention was focused on his son, who needed him more than ever. But Stella still lived his head, in the little things he did because Stella did it, or rather, used to do, like calling Rossi and Morgan ' _ dude _ ' more than once.

**...**

Life was good again. Stella wan't alone anymore, and Frankie was mostly the reason she got better, lighting up her world. She's never been so happy to be around a kid, knowing that they shared blood. And personality traits. Frankie was a sensitive person and always got too emotional whenever they watched a sad movie as she babysat him. Stella used to do that too, but she hadn't cried in a while and only ended up comforting Frankie as he sobbed while they watched Bambi.

"Is mom coming home soon?" he asked in the middle of the movie, as Stella helped him blow his tiny nose.

"Yeah, she'd be here anytime now," she promised with the softest voice.

But Nina never went to pick him up that night. She was never late and when the clock hit nine p.m, Stella got seriously worried.

"Hey Nina, just...let me know when you're coming, Frankie is asking for you," she sent her the seventh voice message, after that three phone calls sent her to voicemail.

She decided to keep calm and put her brother to bed on his own room she had only for him, "Goodnight buddy," she whispered before going to bed herself.

And at one in the morning her phone buzzed, Nina finally responding with a voice message.

_ "Stella, the sky is so pretty right now, I can see so many stars. This is the last time I'll see them and I'm sorry for it. Please take care of our bo-" _

That last sentence sounded way different than the first ones, but her thick accent and shaky voice was the same. It sounded like she was crying.

Stella replayed the message five times, not processing it yet. _ "Take care of our boy" _ was all she understood and the concern from earlier turned into fear. Something happened to Nina.

_ What the hell do I do. _ Struggling whether to call 911 or go straight to the closest police station to report her as a missing person. But she couldn't go outside, not with Frankie already in bed.

So after calling 911, she considered her last resource, and the first one she thought about. He was still the first contact on her phone, she pressed his name and a hesitant hand brought the phone to her ear, wishing that Aaron hasn't changed his pone number.

_ Please pick up, please pick up, please pick up. _

Aaron was still at the BAU, the entire team was, investigating a series of murders where petite women were being abducted from different locations, such as grocery stores, mall parking lots and even their own driveways.

They were all at the conference room, looking at the pictures pinned on the board of the ones found dead and sharing their ideas when Aaron's phone rang. He stared at her name on the screen, blinking too many times not really processing it at first, in need to step out, "Excuse me."

As he walked to his office he finally picked up, "Stella?"

That ticklish sensation in her stomach surfaced after a long time, just realizing how much she missed his voice. "Yes. Hi. It's me," she answered way too loud, bringing her thumb to her mouth biting her nail, "I'm sorry for calling, this late."

He cleared his voice, closing the door behind him, his chest automatically swelling up with joy, and love, "It's fine, how are you?"

"I'm fine," she responded almost in a whisper as a small smile formed on her face, involuntarily closing her eyes. His voice truly felt like a hug. Shaking her head, she spoke loud again, "I called because I need your help."

"Sure, anything, what is it," he quickly answered.

"I think something happened to Nina. Sh-She sent me a voice message about the stars?- and she sounded weird. She's never late. Something happened to her Hotch. I already called the police but-"

"Where are you right now?" He interrupted concerned, he could feel her anxiety.

"I'm in Virginia, I- I'm looking after Frankie."

"Send me your address. I'm on my way."

Soon after that, he let his team know about it, "we might have another victim, but I have to take care of something first, so just keep working on what we have and I'll keep you guys updated." They all looked at each other confused but neither questioned him.

Except Rossi.

"What's going on?" The man asked, walking next to Aaron through the bullpen.

"I got a call. Stella," David raised his brows as an _ 'oh'  _ sound escaped from him, "but it's not like that. Her brother's mom sent her a voice message, and she said something about the stars, just like our victims did, so it's most likely to be connected," he quickly explained.

After putting the address Stella sent him on his phone, he drove right on the speed limit, taking advantage that the roads were almost empty and turned on the SUV sirens half way through just in case a cop decided to pull him over.

Two cups of coffee at almost two in the morning was definitely a bad idea, but Stella felt impatient and already anxious, walking around the house, checking on Frankie every ten minutes. He seemed so peaceful.

Forty five minutes later of walking around, she finally sat on her couch and the doorbell rang. Her heart rate went up and abruptly became aware that wasn't ready to see  _ him _ yet. She tried to fix her hair, brushing her eyebrows with her fingers even, but she looked a bit rough anyway.

She took a deep breath an opened the door, "Hi," she quietly said letting him in. It's been two years, and their feelings were the exact same. His palms were all sweaty, not really acknowledging that he was truly seeing her, and her cheeks were already flushed. And in spite of both feeling their body tingling, neither showed any other emotion, putting their feelings aside because the situation wasn't about them, yet.

"What happened?" He asked walking inside and shutting the door behind him.

Stella crossed her arms and looked towards Frank's room, "Nina, she sent me that voice message over an hour ago," she let him know, replaying it for him.

The words Nina said were exactly the same as the other victims sent to their loved ones, except for the last part.

Not sure whether to tell her what was going on or keep it easy, Aaron swallowed hard. But he had to tell her the truth.

"So you're telling me that she uh-that she might be dead?" She asked bringing her hand to her mouth and anxiously swinging her body from one side to the other.

"It's a possibility yes, but the other victims were kept alive for about fifteen hours so we could still be able to do something for Nina," he calmly explained.

"What about Frankie, what's gonna happen to him?" Her brother was all she could think about. He already had a parent figure missing in his life, he couldn't lose his mom too. He's so little and kind. He doesn't deserve this.

"Why don't you come with me, you can stay at my office and you'll be the first one to know how it goes," he tried to comfort her. That was the last thing he should've done, simply bringing a cop to look after her would've been fine, but he felt the need to keep her close and safe under his watch.

Stella didn't doubt him and only nodded on her way to wake up Frankie, "Buddy," she whispered, softly scratching his arm crouching next to the bed.

"Is mom home now?" He asked, still asleep.

A knot formed in her throat, "not yet, but we're gonna go on a trip now, okay?" She helped him sit on the bed, put his sneakers on and a jacket on top of his pajama, wrapping him in a blanket before picking him up.

"I can carry him if you want," Aaron whispered as he opened the door for them.

"No, we're fine."

She waited for Aaron to open the back door of the SUV and protected his head with her hand as she carefully laid Frankie there. He was a heavy sleeper so he didn't even open his eyes.

On their way back to the BAU, Aaron called Garcia to track Ninas's last phone call. But it wasn't very helpful.

"Do you know her personal relationships? Does she know anyone else here?" He asked just to keep Stella's mind occupied, knowing that she was probably thinking about the worst outcome.

"No, she's very shy and introverted, I don't think she knows that many people."

"We still have time, Stella. It's a good thing that you called," he comforted once again, glancing at her but she was only looking outside the window.

She looked different on Aaron's eyes. After two years of not seeing her, she seemed more mature and her hair was short again, the same length as to when they first met.

"When did you move?" He asked after twenty minutes of silence.

"Five months ago. I got a transfer," she didn't feel like talking, but still turned her face from the window to watch him.

"At a gallery?" He asked eagerly.

"No I uh, quit that job," she unsurely lied, "I'm at an advertising agency now."

"Oh. That's great."

"Yeah, Frankie is the most excited about it. We see each other every weekend." And her stomach became tight again, only thinking about her brother. "What if she's already dead Aaron? What's gonna happen with Frankie?"

He exhaled sharply, thinking about the right this to say, "Are you his only family?"

"Here in the states, yes."

"Well it's either, the court could contact the family he has abroad, you become his guardian or he goes to a foster home, and waits for a family to adopt him."

She violently rubbed her tired eyes. How were those the only options. Or she becomes a parent at twenty five years old or, let a six seven year old Frankie all alone on his own.

Her decision was only one. She would do anything for her Frankie, and if that meant giving up on everything else, she'd do it in a heart beat.


	23. Gone gone gone

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After what happened to Nina, Stella becomes Frankie's guardian, needing Aaron back in her life.

The elevator doors opened once it got to the sixth floor, Aaron guiding Stella who carried sleepy Frankie on her arms to his office.

"He can sleep there." He pointed at his couch, the same one where they made love once. Stella blushed a little but kept a straight face, just like him, feeling uneasy about her brother's sleeping there. "It's uh comfortable, I've slept there multiple times," he assured.

She knew he had the exact same flashbacks, but gave in anyway and sat there with Frank, laying his head on her legs, tucking him with his blanket.

"I'll have Garcia checking up on you. The rest of us we'll keep trying our best to find where she is."

"Thanks."

But there were no clear leads about who the unsub was. There were no connection between the victims, each call was last registered at the abduction site before the phones were turned off and he was cautious, not leaving one trace of DNA nor car prints on the dump sites, that were too far one from the other. He was all over the place and Aaron knew already that they wouldn't be able to find Nina on time.

Stella wanted to keep her hope, but something within her, as she ran her fingers through her sleeping brothers hair, told her that Nina was already gone.

**...**

By seven in the morning, the police had already reported a body at the bank of a river. Once Morgan and Reid came back from the dump site, it was confirmed it was a female body, but she didn't have any ID on her.

"The woman was blonde and very petite, COD was strangulation, fingerprints neatly removed, exactly like the others," Reid added. Aaron pinched the bridge of his nose. He knew Nina had the same body type as the victims, and was a blonde. But that described a thousand women in Virginia too.

Doubtfully, he went to knock on his own office, seeing Stella with her eyes closed resting her head on a fist, but she wasn't sleeping. He got a chair closer to them and sat in front of her.

And just by seeing the look in his face she knew, pressing her her lips tight together.

"What do I tell him," she whispered, expressionless.

Aaron grabbed her hand by impulse, but she didn't let go, she never wanted to let go of his warm and gentle touch ever again.

"It's not confirmed yet. They found a body, but, you have to do a body recognition, she didn't have any ID on her. They're taking the body to the morgue now."

"I have to, recognize her?" She questioned adjusting to on the couch.

"Or I can do it."

"No it's fine, I'll do it. It's just Frankie he-"

"JJ can look after him, she's great with kids so you don't have to worry about it," he said just on time when the blonde showed up at the door, giving a kind smile to Stella.

She placed a soft kiss on her brother's cheek, who was still deep sleeping and slowly got up, putting a stripped pillow under his head.

"Okay. Will you come with me?"

"Yeah, I'll go with you, if you want me to."

**...**

A bald man in grey scrubs was waiting for them inside the cold room. He silently uncovered the dead woman's face, bringing the sheet down to her collarbones. Stella instantly recognized Nina's heart shaped beauty mark on her cheekbone. She always thought that was such a beautiful feature of hers, and her brother inherited it. But she had bruises all over her face and thin red line across her neck.

"Was she- assaulted? sexually?" Stella asked to the doctor. Aaron didn't expect that she wanted to know about that, but he kept quiet, standing a couple of feet behind her, one hand resting on his waist.

The doctor cleared his voice, getting a glare from Aaron who took a few steps closer to them, "She was."

Stella's hand held Nina's, that was as cold as an ice cube, ignoring the missing fingertips, but that thing made her stomach react, holding in the nausea.

"She was so happy, when I moved here, because it wasn't just her and Frankie anymore, and that she had made a new friend, my mom," Stella began as she stroked Nina's thin hair, "How can such horrible things happen to kind people."

All Aaron wanted to do was hold her and comfort her, but she seemed fine. It was so strange for him not to see her cry, he expected her to burst into tears.

"I'm so sorry Stella," he said in his soft voice, rubbing her back. She looked up at him, and they stared at each other, making the doctor uncomfortable, clearing his voice exaggeratedly.

"We still have to do some other exams, but she should be nice and ready tomorrow, for the funeral," the man nodded.

Both of them gave him the exact deadliest glare. And quietly stepped outside.

"Sorry about that, they tend to be cold with us, the FBI, he shouldn't have said it like that."

"It's fine, What happens now," Stella asked as they walked back to the SUV. "What do I tell Frankie,  _ how _ do I tell him."

"He won't understand at first, you may have to remind him often about why his mom isn't with him." That's what happened with his son at least when he told her about his mom, "And it's better for you to be straight forward, don't make up stories of how she went to a better place or things like that."

"Tell him, his mom is dead? Use the word death with a kid?"

"Yes. And give him time to process it."

Car rides with Aaron always brought peace to Stella for some reason, that's why Stella liked being silent whenever he drove. Looking at his hands firmly on the wheel and his eyes focused on the road even when she knew he was paying attention to her too.

"Stella?"

"Yeah?"

"Are you good?" Stella glanced at him. The urge to run her fingers through his cheek almost got to her, instead she placed both hand under her thighs to keep them warm, and away from him. 

"It just doesn't feel real. Am I really about to lose Frankie?"

Aaron grabbed the wheel even tighter, "I had Garcia check if Nina had made a will about who should look after him if anything happened to her," her eyes left the road, back to his face again, "She picked you, you've been his guardian soon after you met them."

A shaky smile popped on her face, "she asked me once, if I would look after him if something happened ... but I never thought she would pick  _ me _ for that."

"She trusted you, she saw that you were capable of doing it. But it's not that easy, you will be called to the court soon. They need to know if you are capable to look after a child."

When they arrived once again to the BAU, Frankie was already awake, having a small breakfast that JJ had brought to him.

And the tears she thought she didn't have, blurred her eyes.

"Fuck," she mouthed, stopping right before walking inside Aaron's office and quickly wiped her eyes, she couldn't break in front of her brother.

"This is the hardest part." Aaron grabbed both of her hands with his, looking straight into her shiny eyes. That was the Stella he knew, but somehow still sensed something was off.

"Okay, I'm ready." She took one deep breathe and exhaled it slow. "I need you in there with me though."

"Whatever you need."

Finally they stepped in, Frankie waving at her since his mouth was full with cookies. JJ left them alone and shut the door.

"How did you sleep?" Stella asked, sitting in front of him. He just nodded, now taking a sip of his boxed apple juice. "There's something I need to tell you," she began, getting his whole attention, "mommy got into an accident."  _ Fuck, already starting wrong. _

"Like in a car?" Frankie asked.

"Something like that, and she got hurt."  _ Shit _ .

"Oh."

"Frankie...mommy died."

The kid tilted his head to one side. "Like Bambi's mom."

Trying not to break in front of him again, she explained everything that was going to happen. The funeral, staying at her house more often and not seeing his mom everyday. Of course he didn't understand it like any other person would, but Stella tried her best.

"Come on, I'll take you back home," Aaron offered after a few moments.

Another silent car ride, or almost, since Frankie had some cartoons playing loud on Stella's phone.

Frankie went straight to turn the tv on, who still had Bambi on. Stella only watched him and stood next to Aaron, who was doing the same as her, following the kid's movements.

"I uh I'm gonna make some coffee do you-"

"No," he interrupted, "I should get back, there's still a killer out there." Although all he wanted was to stay with her, hug her, kiss her.

"Yeah of course," she responded awkwardly.

He walked to the door, Stella opening it for him, "social services will give you a visit, I'll have someone of my trust to be with you during the entire process, to make sure they don't take him away from you."

He knew how much her brother meant to her, and that she was more than capable to look after him, even when she was still young to become a mom.

"Okay."

Their eyes wouldn't leave the other, Aaron looking at Stella's lips like always. But they couldn't. Instead he cupped her face with both hands and placed a gentle kiss on her cheek, holding it for three seconds.

"Bye."

**...**

After two weeks, Frankie was officially under Stella's care. She moved in everything he had on his house and brought it to her apartment, with Allison's help, who gave all the support in the world to her daughter. Although she didn't agree in the beginning, it was the only right thing to do for Frank's well being, and she knew Stella was going to do more than great.

"Mom, can you look after Frankie for a couple of hours, I need to do something."

Allison twitched her mouth, unsure, "I guess, he already ate so we'll be fine."

Hope was all Stella felt while driving to Aaron's work, only thinking of how things were falling into place, so unexpectedly right. She was staying in Virginia for good and Aaron had to know.

As soon as she got the visitor credential she pressed the elevator button too many times until it got to the sixth floor, bumping into the brightest person on the building on her way to his office.

"Hi Penelope, is Hotch in his office?" She excitedly greeted.

Gracia gripped the mug she was holding tight, afraid that it would drop from her hand, "Uh oh," she responded getting a confused face from Stella, "Hi, angel eyes, he uh he's on an assignment."

"Oh," she didn't really know what that meant but her smile still faded away, "Do you know when he's coming back?"

Penelope swallowed nervously and even forgot how to blink, "He's on assignment, on Pakistan."

Stella's wide confused eyes turned into a confused harsh frown, "What? when? when did he leave,"  _ and why didn't he tell me? _

"Two days ago."

"For how long?"

"A year, probably more," the blonde hesitated. She could see the disappointment in Stella's face. 

"oh, okay," she responded as her chest began to hurt, "Thank you."

She turned around on her feet, walking away, hearing Penelope's voice far but her clacking heels were closer, following her to the elevator.

"Do you want some tea I can prepare you some, I can take you out to dinner I-" Garcia said loudly.

"Oh no, I'm good. Thanks Penelope, bye."

Once she got inside the empty elevator and the doors closed, she couldn't hold the heartbreak anymore and grabbed her hair with both hands as her anguish poured out in a torrent of uncontrollable tears, having to support her body on the elevator cold wall. "Damnit," she cried out. Why didn't he tell her? Why not let her know that he was going away? So far away?

He was gone. She lost the love of her, again.


	24. Begin again

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After five years they found each other again.

"Stella, I'm leaving," Steffan knocks on my office door, snapping me out of my focus. Thank god, my head was pounding already.

I look up at him and return the smile he was giving me, "I'll meet you in the hallway."

I put my Ipad and pen on my bag and look out the big window. How did I not see it was already freaking snowing. I wrap myself in my big scarf, winter jacket, and in my way to the elevator I put my gloves on.

"You look adorable," he says as he sees me approaching him. I just roll my eyes at him and lock my fingers with his as he presses the elevator button. "So I did a thing," he begins talking as we now wait to get to the first floor.

"Which is?"

"I found those drumsticks you said Frankie wanted."

My eyes wide open. I couldn't find them anywhere. "No you didn't," I look up at him. And he's so tall that I have to stretch my neck to the maximum to see his face, "Where."

"Facebook Marketplace." Right. the only place I didn't look into. "And I ... already have them," he added.

"What?"

He nods, "You can pick them up maybe, at my place? Tomorrow?"

Shit.

We walk outside the building, turning left on our way to my subway station, "I uh- I promised Frankie I'll be home tomorrow, since he's at a sleep over right now, he misses me so. Why don't  _ you _ come tomorrow? That way he gets to try them right away," I say and my chin starts shaking, I should've put on tights under my jeans.

"Sure, let me know the time. I'll be there," he responds kindly, wiping a snowflake from my glasses.

"See you tomorrow then," I say and he kisses my cheek leaving me at the station before walking to his direction, opposite of mine.

As usual I go downstairs, swipe my metro card and walk to my line, both hands on my jacket pockets, looking down at the melting snow on my boots until I get behind the yellow line, waiting for the subway that I already hear coming.

I hated that. Why can't I just trust him. We've been alone before, that's how I discovered he was a great kisser, a really good kisser, but I know he'll want more eventually and the last time I thought  _ I  _ wanted more, ended up being the most embarrassing thing ever. I never thought I would escape from a guy's apartment leaving him all ... confused. But that was over a year ago. And I'm ready now.

Steffan really likes me, I'm very conscious about that, he's proved it so many times with his small gestures, bringing me coffee every morning, grabbing lunch for me because I forget to eat and how he always waits for me at the end of the day so that I don't have to walk alone to my station, even when it's just one block away from the office. And because he's said it to my face.

"I like everything about you Stella," were his exact words in the middle of our make out a while back, which freaked me out so I subtly kicked him out of my house.

I'm not gonna lie, I like him too and we'd look good together, but he's just not ...  _ Aaron? _

_ It can't be. Am I tripping? Am I seeing ghosts? _

The train's speed must've messed with my vision or something. I wait for it to stop and rush to the carriage I think I saw him in.

The doors open and everyone decides to come out, people pushing me, hundreds of shoulders hitting mine and making it difficult to get inside, but I barely make it. I stand at the end of the carriage and look at the tall dark haired man standing at the other end.

It really is him.

And that feeling, in which my chest feels too tight that I think it's about to explode because my heart grew bigger just by seeing his face, appears. And my heart starts to beat so fast that I forget how to breathe, still considering I have a heart decease, which now proves me that activates when he's around. And the butterflies in my stomach, the ones that belong to him only, wake up after a long ass time, going crazy batting their wings hard as if their only intention is to rip through me. I feel everything all at once but it's not overwhelming at all. I feel more alive than ever, like I'm twenty two all over again. My cheeks burning already. I swear I could cry right now. His hair, his eyes, his frown, his hand thing. He looks the same, but his little wrinkles are heavier, and so are his under-eye bags. He must be tired.

Wait. What is he doing in a New York subway? Undercover maybe? But he looks too relaxed, not aware of his surroundings. Not aware of me.

Shit. I look at him too much apparently. His eyes lock into mine for a second but he doesn't react.

Let's be honest, it's been five years, and I must look different, I think. Maybe it's my glasses. I take them off and hang them on the zipper of my jacket but somebody stands in front of him before he can look at me again, blocking my vision. I slowly walk through a group of teenagers towards him, stopping a few people away. I surely look like a creep right now. But can't care less.

He's looking at his feet and doesn't seem to want to look up again. So I stare. God he's more beautiful than ever. I wanna walk over all of these people and fill his entire face with kisses. With every kiss I didn't get to give him these past years.

After a few moments he finally looks up at me again, and I try so hard not to smile. But I look away, searching for my phone inside my bag and quickly take my gloves off to dial his number that I still have, hopping it's still the same, just to make sure it's him.

Then a phone starts ringing, making a couple of people lift their heads, but it was  _ his _ phone. I knew it was a good thing to never delete him from my contacts. I watch him search for it in his coat pocket and after he reads the screen, he looks up again looking right at me, and I finally smile. He hasn't erased me either.

"Hi," I say through the phone, even though I know he can hear me perfectly without it, but he keeps his phone against his ear, staring.

"Hi."

I feel like I forgot what his voice sounded like, because it's like the very first time. I walk to him, saying  _ 'excuse me' _ way too many times until I get to him.

"It really is you," she says looking up at me as her eyes become shiny, putting her phone away.

That thing she does with her lip when she doesn't want to smile, is the same. She looks different though, her hair is longer and darker than the last time I saw her, but I would recognize her dimpled smile and rosy cheeks anywhere. And her eyes, her big green shiny eyes are staring into my soul.

I open my mouth to say something, anything, but nothing comes out.

"You can put your phone away," she smiles bigger.

Great. "Right, hi."

"Hi. Wha-what are you doing here, in New York," she asks excitedly. She standing so close to me that I don't realize I'm holding my breath. And as soon as I breathe again her sweet soft perfume takes me back to the past, to us.

"I live here now," I respond, and her face brightens up even more. How can she be so stunning.

"You do?" She asks tilting her head.

"Yeah. What are  _ you _ doing here, in New York," I copy her.

"I live here too."

And just like that my happiness goes through the subway roof. How did we end up living in the same city.

"What happened, why-why New York? What happened to your job at Quantico?" I ask him. He looks away for a second, his eyes on my glasses hanging on my jacket.

"I got reassigned," his voice becomes softer. I want to ask him so many questions but I don't want to be too intruding.

"Is that a good thing?" I ask instead.

He smiles, and I see how his chest inflates with air, "It is now."

_ "Marcy Avenue."  _ Crap crap crap. Why do trains go so fast.

"This is me." I say extremely disappointment. "Why don't you-"

"Yes," he quickly interrupts. And I don't even bother to hide a smirk. God I could eat his face right now.

The doors open and we step out on our way to the exit, when I notice he has the slightest limp, "Are you hurt?" I ask looking down at his shoes and impulsively grabbing his arm.

"Uh kind of. I got shot in the leg."

I don't know why, but I laugh. He keeps taking his injuries so lightly. "Then why are you walking, and not resting, recovering."

"Because it happened two years ago."

And my jaw drops, hopefully not too much, "oh."

"That's why I got reassigned," he begins, and my whole attention is on him, not even seeing where I'm walking, "I'm not allowed in the field anymore because of my injure, so Emily replaced me as unit chief in Quantico, and when the New York police heard about it, they offered me a job, so I'm here now."

"Oh no, that bad were you hurt?" No shit Stella.

"Yeah, the bullet got to the bone and I almost lost my leg," he explains so calmly, but my stomach went all scrambled, "but the doctors were able to save it so, I got a limp now."

"Well it's a good limp, it gives your walk ... rhythm." I have no idea where I was going for with that.

But he laughs. And my butterflies go crazy again. I missed his laugh so much.

We walk out the station and the snow is heavier. "Do you always take that line?" I ask. There is no way he takes the same train as me and we just crossed paths.

"No, I was on my way to visit my brother at his restaurant."

"Oh."

"But he wasn't expecting me, so we're good."

"No we should go, I'm starving," I say too excited. I really am starving but he doesn't say anything and just smiles at me, "I mean, if you're okay with it."

"We definitely should go, I'm hungry too."

Lucky me it was already dark and he didn't get to see how my cheeks turn red, as if he's never seen me react like that before. How does my body still respond the same way, anything he does or says, I simply can not control it. And he's the only one that has that effect in me. I don't get shy easily, but with him... everything is different.

We walk in silence, and it's not that awkward silence where you don't have any topic to talk about with a person you haven't seen after five years. I felt so speechless that I subtly pinched my hand to make sure I'm not dreaming, because I've had so many dreams about this exact moment. Us reunited again.

The restaurant is literally two blocks away from my place, and I've been here before with Frankie because he's fascinated with the industrial style of it. He always takes pictures of the drawings he leaves on the blackboard wall whenever we come. "This ... is your brother's restaurant?" I ask as he opens the door for me.

"One of them, yes."

"Frankie loves the fries here, he says they're better than the Macdonald's, and the kid knows about food." I see him chuckle as we chose a table for two by the window. I truly didn't know it was his brother's restaurant

A young waiter gets to our table with his small notebook and pen ready to take our order, but the blonde guy I've only seen once takes over and kindly sends him to another table, "I got it," Sean says, his eyes going from Hotch to me. "Well this is a surprise."

I press my lips together and wait for Aaron to say something. "Hope we didn't get here too late," he responds.

"Not at all," Sean says glancing at me once. I really don't think he remembers me. "Do you guys want the menu or, you let  _ me _ decide."

"Oh yeah, surprise us, just no meat for me," I say feeling Hotch's eyes on me as I look up at his brother. Now I think I see a little resemblance between the two. The tiniest, but it's there.

"No ... meat," he writes on a piece of paper, "got it. Some wine? Pineapple juice? Water?"

I look at Aaron to let him decide, "Juice?" I only shrug my shoulders in agreement.

After Sean leaves, I take off my coat and clean my glasses to put them on.

"They suit you well," he points at them rising his brows, taking his coat off too. Lord. "So how's Frank?"

I take a deep breath before I start bragging about my baby, "He is amazing. He's my best friend and gives such good life advice for being a young boy, very mature for his age. We do look more alike now, and even when he knows I'm his sister sometimes he introduces me as his mom. The first time he did that I cried, of course. What else? Uh, he's in a band called "white rabbit" and he's the drummer, very talented." That always happens, I get too into it when I talk about him, but Hotch listens, and I know he's looking at my mouth, he doesn't even try to hide it, "he's gotten so big though."

"How old is he? Twelve?"

"Almost thirteen," I nod, "I can't believe I'm gonna have a teenager soon."

"It's gonna be hard, I warn you."

"Right, Jacks two years older, is he alright?" I knew about Aaron's ex wife passing away, only because Penelope told me once when we bumped into each other before I moved. And I know he knows I know.

"He's doing great, living with his aunt in Quantico. I wanted to bring him with me but, he didn't want to. All of his friends are there, I didn't want to make him miserable by living here, although he loves New York. It's good that he makes his own decisions."

"Does it get lonely, being away from him?"

"I mean, yeah, I miss him but we talk everyday and he knows how to get here by train on his own whenever he wants. And living in the same city as Sean helps with the loneliness."

"Veggie tacos for the lady, and the normal one for you Aaron," Sean interrupts placing our food on the table. It smells so good my mouth is watering already.

"Thank you."

"Isn't this weird," I ask after I take two bites of the very tasty taco.

"Not really," he responds with a bit of food in his mouth. He's so adorable.

"I mean ... we have gotten old, I definitely have expression lines that I didn't expect to have by thirty," I say jokingly before finishing my first taco. They were tiny.

He shakes his head with a silent laugh, "you're so beautiful."

Did I almost choke with a chickpea? Yes. I had to take a sip of my juice to also calm the heat that started to grow inside me.

Our legs instantly touch under the table as if they had magnets all of a sudden. It's us, we're still the same. Then his right hand grabs my left, rubbing his thumb on my skin.

"And you? How you've been?" He asks, and I don't know why my mind goes back to the day I heard he left.

"I went back for you, after I got Frankie, and you were gone," I think out loud, but I really wanted to hear what he had to say.

"I'm sorry." Not enough.

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"You had ... more important things going on in your life." I guess he's right, it still hurt me though. But I finally have him in front of me now and can't lose him again. "I'm sorry."

"I know." Now I'm the one grabbing his hand.

After we finished, Sean refused to let us pay, Aaron saying that he never lets him pay. I felt so bad but we did leave him a big tip.

"My apartment is only a couple of block away," I say, hoping he gets my hint.

"I'll walk you."

"Good, 'cause I don't want to say goodbye yet."

"Me neither," he chuckles.

I offer him my hand, and he takes it, both of us watching how our fingers intertwine again. My butterflies go crazy for the hundredth time this evening and it feels so right. His touch is just right.

The snow then became so heavy that I could barely see what was right in front of us, "I think we have to hurry," I laugh looking up at him. The snow falling on his hair makes him look so unreal. I can't believe I'm really holding his hand. And it's like he heard my thoughts, holding my hand tighter as we increase our speed, until we quickly get under the roof of my apartment building.

"It's freezing," I comment. I really don't want to leave him. Ever. So I talk about the weather.

I was about to bring my hands to my mouth to warm them up, but his lips came first.


	25. Complete love

His soft lips against mine. God how much I've missed this. I've missed how my legs want to give up when his hand grab my waist and the other cups my face, and how all of my senses explode under the feeling of his tongue as I inhale his perfume that brings me so much comfort. My hands are grabbing his wet hair and I wrap my fingers on it. So tight. He kisses different. Better. Not that he was a bad kisser but the way his tongue moves feels different. Maybe I kiss different? I don't know but it feels right, like I'm completely his again. I am. His. I belong to him only.

I feel the lack of air already, moaning in his mouth. God damn. That's what he does to me.

"I think you should come inside with me," I barely say, breaking the kiss as we both gasp for air, leaning our foreheads against the other. But he doesn't respond, "Frankie is not home until tomorrow."

And just like that he kisses me more intensely. "Inside." I say again.

We break the kiss, again, and I take a deep breath before holding his hand and guiding him inside as the automatic doors open.

"Good evening miss Broste," Rory the super of the building greets, like always.

"Hi Rory," I respond all flushed. He literally knows about everyone's lives here so I don't mind him seeing me, holding hands with a middle aged man. The hottest middle aged on earth.

I notice how my man tries to hide his face scratching his forehead, "You don't have to hide Hotch," I laugh, calling the elevator.

"I'm not."

All I can focus on is his face and how I want him to eat my mouth again. The elevator arrives and as soon as the doors close he pushes me against the wall kissing me fiercely yet so carefully, putting his hand behind my head so that I don't get hurt by his strength.

Barely, I press the fourteenth floor and the buzzing of the elevator starts as we start moving, his lips still on my face now kissing my cheeks. I swear I let out the biggest moan when his tongue gets to my neck, forgetting about the cameras.

"I'm pretty sure Rory can see us right now," I say out of breath. And he stops.

"Right, sorry."

I close my eyes and take a deep breath. It's Aaron. My Hotch. The only man I feel safe with and the only one I truly know who loves me.

I'm so fucking ready.

Inside my apartment, things change. He becomes softer and instead of going for a violent kiss, he rubs his nose against my cheek. That little thing he does to me, going from one cheek to the other. My heart is racing so fast right now, I'm pretty sure he can hear it beating.

"You're still in my Stella," he whispers, "I wanna make love to you," and finally kisses me softly.

Freaking butterflies. "Fuck, okay," I respond in the same tone, as I lick his top lip before grabbing the back of his head once again and kissing him in the only way I've been wanting to. I don't know how I'm not melting yet because my entire body is tingling. He takes off his coat and quickly grabs me by my thighs as I jump wrapping my legs around is waist. He starts walking towards my room and opens the first door he sees. Or feels.

"That's the bathroom," I laugh in his mouth, and I feel him smile too.

"This one?" He grabs another knob. The right one.

"Mmhm."

He closes the door behind us and puts me down, as we both help the other undress, taking out the so many layers of clothes. I hate winter sometimes.

"God I've missed these two," he groans once I get rid of my bra, taking one nipple in his mouth softly. I smile and lean back a little to watch him do it, seeing how he gently bites my piercing. I gasp loud. It feel so good, with him, so fucking good. I'd let him do anything he wants with me any day of my life.

My hand goes to touch him above his boxers. Lord he's gonna tear me I swear. But I don't care.

Before I could do anything else, he grabs my thighs again and lays me gently in my bed, adjusting in top of me leaning down to slowly kiss my neck, chest, down to my stomach wetting his lips before sucking my inner thighs, pulling them closer to him as he lays down and adjusts between them, kissing me above my panties. I'm throbbing so much that it hurts.

"Aaron please," I beg, gripping his hair. I can't even keep my eyes open, but I feel his thumb getting inside my underwear from the side, slowly massaging my clit, my now very wet clit since he starts spreading my arousal all over.

Finally he takes them off and licks me a few times before adjusting entirely on top of me, looking into my eyes sliding his tongue inside my mouth, and I moan again resting my hand behind his neck.

"I haven't stopped loving you." The way he said it, I know he meant it. "Even when I tried not to, you were everywhere."

"I'm right here."

Slowly he slides inside me. I can't help but bite his lip as he goes in deeper, hearing him grunt deliciously in my mouth. He still feels so good, I swear that our bodies are meant to be together. It's the way his hands fit just right around my waist, how our tongues work perfectly together. And how we move at the same rhythm.

"Damn," he groans.

**...**

Blossomed is the only word that describes how I feel right now. Laying next to him, so close to his face. His hand brushing my arm gently as we just stare at each other.

"Marry me." He whispers in the middle of the night. Him and his prepositions that make me lose my mind.

Not really sure if I'm dreaming I peck his lips softly. "You're crazy."

"I so am. I'm crazy for you." Fuck me. Those four little words again.

"Seriously?"

"You can't tell me this is just a coincidence, us, right now." He's making his voice softer, so I know he talking for real. But I forgot how to speak. "I love you the same, and more. You were my greatest love and I can't let you go again."

He's so right about us being a simply coincidence. We're not. I literally lost all of my hopes when he left and this moment proves we're so made for each other.

"I'm not the same from seven years ago, and I'm not alone Hotch, I have Frankie now, I'm a parent I-"

"I know, that's what makes me love you even more. I'm not the same either. But  _ we _ are the same, you and I." This man makes me feel all types of things with the least amount of words, "Marry me."

"When."

"Right now," he laughs. His high pitch contagious laugh. Fuck me again. "I don't know, soon?"

I sigh deep, biting my bottom lip, "Fine, but I'm not changing my last name."

"You don't have to."

**...**

That sound by the door that wakes me up abruptly are Frankie's keys. Oh no.

"Shit. Frankie's home," I whisper tapping Aaron's arm that's wrapped tight around my waist, making me struggle to let go of him.

"What?" He groans as I'm now already up putting on my robe. My alarm hasn't gone off yet so it must be super early. 10:12 a.m. Nop. It's late. Crap. I forgot it was my day off.

"It's Frankie."

"Shit," Hotch exclaims quietly. I notice how nervous he got sitting up quickly on the bed looking around my room.

"Okay stay here I- I'm gonna- I- just stay here," I whisper again, but loud.

I fix my hair and step out to see my boy closing the door behind him. "Hey rockstar," I greet him as if nothing had happened.

"Hey," he reaches for a hug like he usually does. He goes straight to his room and I follow him. Why am I so scared of him now. He's sweet Frankie. I guess it's because he's only seen one man inside our home since I started to take care of him.

"Did you have fun?" I ask, now following him to the kitchen.

"Yep."

"Who- who dropped you off? Alex's mom?" I already knew the answer though.

"Yep," he says again.

Then I hear my door opening. I'm screwed now. I hear Aaron's steps get closer and he's completely dressed, freaking hot.

Frankies confused face was so funny, furrowing his brows too much and smiling weirdly, I couldn't help smile weird too. But he keeps doing his thing, taking out his orange juice from the fridge and pouring it into a wine glass like the fancy little guy he is.

"Hey I know you," Frank greets Aaron.  _ What _ . He kindly shakes hands with Hotch, who was as confused as me.

"You do?" I ask him, looking at a now very smiley Aaron.

"Yeah I remember you from... I don't know where but I've seen your face," Frank explains using his hands like he always does.

He was so little when they met, but I guess he could have Hotch's face somewhere in his memories.

"You're my mo- Stella's friend, right?" He wasn't being weird at all. Of course he wasn't. He's always so polite I don't know why I doubted him.

"I am, yeah," Aaron responded glancing at me, clearly more relieved, relaxing his shoulders and resting one hand in his waist.

Frankie drinks his juice in one long sip and burps silently, "Cool."

This whole situation was something I never expected to witness. The love of my life interacting with the other love of my life. Although they've met before, but things were so different back then. And right now everything feels perfect, like everything fell into place.

Then the doorbell rang, the three of us looking at the other.

"I'm not expecting anyone," Frankie says rising his hands in the air, free of guilt.

Shit again.  _ I _ was supposed to be waiting for someone. I look through the peephole and see him, the tallest guy I know with glasses, standing behind my door with what seemed two takeout bags from my favorite coffee place.

I take a deep breath and open the door for him, "Steffan."


	26. Easy decisions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Stella goes straight forward with Steffan

That morning Steffan woke up early, decided to ask Stella to officially be his girlfriend. He impatiently waited for her to text him but she was probably sleeping late, so he thought why not give her a visit. The donuts he bought at nine thirty where from the coffee place near their work were her favorite, and her coffee order was always the same, he memorized it the very first day they went to grab some together, two months after he started working at ' _ Monument' _ , one of the greatest advertising agencies in New York and in which Stella had already been promoted twice after working there for four years.

From the moment he saw her, he got mesmerized, by her smile and tattoos. Because he thought he was going to be the only fully tattooed person at the office. And although Stella was his boss, he still managed to take her out for dinner once.

For Stella, there was nothing wrong with accepting, after the third time he asked, since he was new to the city and needed someone to guide him and give him some advice. But with time, he became more attentive, and deep down she liked that.

And it's been like that for almost a year. So it was time for him to make the next move.

"Hey Steffan," Rory greeted him as he walked into the lobby.

"Good morning sir," he waved going straight to the elevator, but Rory stopped him.

"Are you here to see miss Broste?" The man in uniform already knew that, but he also knew that Stella wasn't alone, since the mysterious guy she came with the night before holding hands, hand't come down yet.

"Yes, she's home right?"

"I'm not sure," he lied, approaching the tall guy, to make small talk, "So how you've been."

"Well right now I'm a bit nervous," he confessed timidly, "I'm gonna ask her to be my girlfriend."  _ Uh oh.  _ "Do you have any advice?"

"Well, she is a mother, are you sure about that? You're young, I don't think you want to become a dad?"

The guy adjusted his glasses pushing them up his nose bridge, uncomfortable with what Rory said, "I'm absolutely sure. I know she's a mom and that's not a bad thing for me."

Outraged, he walked away to call the elevator. All Rory wanted to do was give Stella time to get rid of the older looking man before Steffan arrived, but clearly failed.

Steffan pressed the doorbell as the nervousness took over him, feeling his hands that were holding their breakfast get sweaty.

"Steffan," Stella greeted him. All he thought was about how cute she looked in a robe.

"Hey, you never texted me so I thought, why not come and surprise you," he said with the biggest smile. The guilt inside Stella was horrendous.

"Yeah I- forgot to text you," she stuttered. He was still standing at the entrance, and she had no idea what to do at that moment. "Come on in," was the only right thing to say. _ Crap. _

Confidently he stepped inside her apartment, going straight to the kitchen as if it was his own house. It was strange for him to see an old guy standing in her kitchen talking to Frankie. The three boys looked at each other, waiting for Stella to say something.

"Steffan uh this is Aaron, a friend of mine. Steffan is a friend from work," she awkwardly introduced them, pressing her lips together afterwards and cursing on the inside.

"Well we're more than friends," a smiley Steffan commented shaking Aaron's hand.

Aaron opened his mouth to say something, glaring at her confused, but the new guy wouldn't let him.

"Hey Frankie look what I got," he excitedly gets the drumsticks from his messenger bag.

Receiving the drumsticks, Frankies face lit up, "Sick! Dude I'm gonna try these right now. You want to come?" he asks Steffan. This kid is way to smart and already knew the whole situation was uncomfortable for his sister.

"Sure."

The two of them went to Frankie's room, where he had his drums, leaving Aaron and Stella alone.

"More than friends?" Was the first thing he said, putting his hands on his pockets.

She took a sharp breath, "I don't know why he said that. I mean I know but- we work together everyday and we've been close these past months, we've only kissed a few times. Aaron if I had known that you-" That he was gonna just show up again in her life, she would've never gotten Steffan's hopes high. She truly felt horrible.

"I understand. Are you gonna tell him?" he asked, taking a couple steps closer to her.

"Of course I will." She looked up at him as he stood in front of her, putting a strand of hair behind her ear as his eyes went straight to her lips.

"Okay. Well I have to go anyways," he said leaning down, close to her mouth.

Aaron kissed her softly, thing that made her close her eyes and simply enjoy the moment, "but I don't want you to leave."

"I have to, I got work later today, and you have a situation to handle."

And so does he.

"You're right."

"Bye then," he whispers giving her another kiss.

"Bye. And call me, or I'll call you."

"I will."

Neither really wanted to say goodbye, physically not being able to let go of the other and intensifying the kiss with the barely noticeable background sounds of the drums being played. Probably by Steffan since it had no rhythm.

"Okay, go," she abruptly pulled away agitated, making him smile.

Aaron walked to the door grabbed his briefcase and coat, that still were laying on the floor, holding the doorknob to give her one last look, undressing her with his eyes.

"Go," she said again, biting her lip.

The first thing Aaron did after getting to the first floor and saying goodbye to Rory, was look for his phone.

"Hey Beth, it's me. We need to talk, just call me when you can."

It's not that he cheated again, Beth was his friend, same thing as Stella with her guy, only a few kisses and two dates. It was a new thing so he completely forgot about her. That's the effect Stella has on him, forgetting about everyone, even the person he's seeing.

Meanwhile Stella was anxiously eating a donut from the ones Steffan brought.

"He was a bit old to be your friend," Steffan commented once he came back, leaving Frankie playing the drums in his room.

She inhales deep while looking at him, thinking about the right words to say, "I need to talk to you," she begins ignoring what he said and taking a huge bite of a second donut.

"Okay." He sat in across from her, taking a sip of his coffee.

"Aaron, he's not my friend. I mean, he's way more than that." He tilted his head to one side, not really understanding what she was saying, "He is the love of my life. And five years ago I thought I had lost him forever, but he's here, right now living in the same city as me, like we are meant to be."

"I don't get it, he looked like a dad. He could be your dad."

A harsh frown arose on her face, why would he keep commenting about his age, "He's just eighteen years older."

"Yeah, like a said, he could still be your dad."

"It doesn't matter. What I'm saying is, I appreciate you so much Steffan, you treat me so well but I can't keep seeing you like that, and you can't just show up at my house without notice."

"Are you breaking up with me?"

She let out a laugh, what was he talking about, "We are not together."

"Not yet, do you want to? be me girlfriend?"

"I- what? Why would you ask me that now? Did you not hear me?"

He did hear her but still wanted to ask her that question, that was the reason he was there on the first place not really expecting to be rejected, "So you want to be with that old guy?" She nods, "I guess I'm done here then."

"Wait, I have to pay you the drumsticks," Stella interrupted taping her body as if she had her wallet somewhere with her.

"No, it was a gift for Frankie, don't worry."

"Steffan I am truly sorry, so sorry." She felt like he used him the past months, and it only took for Aaron to show up once in her life, to toss Steffan away. But if she was honest, she would do that even if she was seeing Johnny Depp himself. "Please don't make things awkward at work," she pleaded as she walked him out her house.

"I'll try, but Stella, you could've told me you didn't want anything with me." He truly sounded sad, but he felt mostly disappointed.

"I did, want something, until yesterday," she confessed, "I'm sorry," she wanted to hear one last word from him but he walked away without looking back keeping his head up.

Now that Stella took care of her situation, feeling a bit distressed, it was time for Aaron.

"Hey," Beth greeted sweetly kissing his cheek. He was waiting for her inside a small café, one that he's only been in one time before because she brought him there once. "What is it?" He sat straight on his chair, resting both hand on the small circular table where there were two cups of coffee. He ordered one for her even when he knew she wouldn't take bad what he was about to say.

"I can't keep seeing you," he went straight forward. Beth grabbed the cup in front of her, feeling it's warm against her palm but didn't take a sip from it.

"Can I ask why?"

"Someone from my past, showed up again and-"

"And you still love her," she continued. "Okay. I get it." Finally she brought the cup to her mouth thinking about his words. She really liked him, but if he didn't want to be with her, there was nothing she could do, "I wanna hear the story. Your story with her."

The way she said that, with a small smile on her face, made Aaron feel more relaxed and gave in with her request, actually telling her his love story with Stella.

"Well, that was intense. And I do agree that you guys casually finding each other after five years is not a coincidence, I mean, go marry her right now," Beth commented with a giggle after he talked for forty minutes. It actually was a fascinating story for her.

And Aaron was decided to proceed with his impulsive proposal to Stella.

Later that afternoon, Frankie noticed how quiet his sister was while they finished the leftover lunch from the day before.

"You're struggling with something," Frankie said, snapping Stella out of her thoughts. "I didn't want to say it in front of him, but I remember Aaron from a painting I saw once." Her mouth twisted into a smile, remembering exactly what painting he was talking about, the one she painted after a short weekend at a lake cabin a long time ago. She still kept it somewhere at the very end of her closet.

"You got me."

The kid was intrigued about Aaron, about why he ended up being portrayed in a large canvas by Stella, something she doesn't do anymore, "Was he your greatest love?"

Another smile appeared on her face, "You are way too smart."

"I like him, he's too old though," he mocked her, bringing the empty plates to the sink.

"He's not too old, he's just, older," she argued, knowing that he was joking.

"You wanna know what I think?"

"Always."

"I think you should invite him over,  _ again _ ," he fake gagged, making her blush, "I said I liked him, but I need to know who is he and why does he make you look so stupid all of a sudden."

"Hey, do not talk to me like that."

"Sorry, I meant... brainless."


	27. Love story

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Happily ever after

What a stupid and driven decision was to marry Aaron Hotchner. But it was also the right one. Like always, Stella heard what her brother said and actually invited Aaron again to her house. Frankie acted all over protective, not in a bad way but in a curious way, he wanted to know everything about this Aaron guy and actually made a list on a notebook about all of the questions he wanted to be answered only by Stella's greatest love.

"The last one  _ and _ most important, what are your intentions with my sister?" The kid asked in a dramatic tone.

Aaron grabbed Stella's hand over the table and squeezed it gently, "I want to marry her."

"Oh god, really," Frankie asked in a high pitch voice, which made the both adults laugh. "Okay, you have my blessings, I guess, is that what I'm supposed to say? Wait, are you gonna move in with us? This is a tiny apartment."

It was indeed a  **very** rushed decision, since they hadn't thought about that yet.

"What are we gonna do?" Stella asked later that night once they were already in bed. "We can't be married and live separated."

"What do you think Frank wants? Would he like moving to Manhattan instead of living in Brooklyn?"

"You mean us, moving in with you?"

"Yeah. When I got transferred my only condition was that I didn't want to pay for a place to live, since it wasn't my choice to move here, so I don't really pay rent, and that benefit applies if I also have a family."

"Dude, do you realize how lucky you are? I'll talk to Frankie, he'll love it, I know," Stella agreed immediately. "We have to make his room soundproof though."

"We can do that. Maybe we can make our room sound proof too," he teased, both considering doing it for real.

That same night Stella thought about telling him what had happened to her almost seven years ago, because it was him who made her realize she was actually overcoming the situation that haunted her for so long. She used to be terrified whenever a man would speak from behind her, close to her ear or not, triggering all of her memories, her nightmares. But when Aaron did it, whisper something in her ear from behind, she felt safety and peace only, and the good kind of butterflies.

His reaction was something Stella wasn't really expecting. His heart shattered into hundred pieces as he heard her talking, silently tearing up.

"I wasn't there to protect you," was the first thing he said while Stella wiped his few tears from the corner of his eyes, feeling guilt and rage from within him.

Of course she told him it was not his fault, just like how she wasn't there when he got almost murdered. Making them both think what would have happened if Stella had accepted his proposition of moving in with him back then. Foyet would've still broken into his apartment, probably getting to Stella first and who knows what would've happened to her.

"Everything happens for a reason," she comforted him, hugging him tight.

**...**

Then the wedding planning began. Both wanted something as quick and simple as possible, not caring much about a priest, church nor a big venue.

"How do you feel about Rossi being our wedding officiant?" Aaron proposed a week before the wedding.

"The David Rossi?" She asked jokingly. The man was there for Aaron throughout his entire relationship with Stella, giving him the best advice. He was the only right person to do it, and Stella agreed with that.

The guest list was very small. Only Aaron's former coworkers, his son Jack, Sean, who offered one of his restaurants as a venue, Sadie who also offered her service to organize the event, Stella's mom and Izzy, who had been living in Spain for over two years after falling in love with a Spanish guy, but promised Stella she would be there through a FaceTime call.

There wasn't anything else for them to discuss, and after two weeks, a soft rainy wedding day arrived.

"I can't believe you're actually getting married," a very neatly dressed Frankie commented as he witnessed Stella finishing getting ready at their apartment, along with Allison who arrived the night before and helped her with her hair and makeup.

"You look so pretty," Allison added. She couldn't stop staring at her and how stunning she looked with her just dyed ruby red hair and a simple long cream dress. Stella had been wanting to go back to that color for so long and that day felt just right to finally do it. Allison truly thought the situation was going to be awkward, but she was a changed woman and after seeing how happy her daughter was, that was all that mattered. "Are you ready?"

One last glance in the mirror, Stella nodded, feeling more like a fairy than a bride. 

Her future husband was waiting for her in the living room, impatiently bouncing his leg. "Hotch you are so not ready to see Stella," Frankie warned him, but she was already walking behind him, looking right at Aaron who stood up too quickly having to rest most of his weight on his good leg. Whenever he was near, which wasn't that often, his injured leg would hurt, but at that moment it a was good type of pain.

Speechless. All of the words he ever knew were gone from his brain and only brought one hand to his mouth trying to hide his emotions.

"Penelope texted me, everyone's already at the restaurant so we have to hurry," Stella said with a big smile approaching him.

"You hair," he finally said cupping her face with both hands.

"Do you like it?" He nodded, pecking her lips softly, "You look handsome," she complimented him, resting her palm on his chest, feeling how fast his heart was racing.

"Ahem," the young boy cleared his voice. "You can kiss at the altar, let's go."

The restaurant they chose was the one farther from Stella's apartment, since it had more room, but the style was the same, very elegant and cozy, especially that cold day in which Sean lit up the fireplace only for them.

As soon as they arrived, Aaron went straight to hug Jack, who was already there sitting at a table with the entire BAU team.

"Congratulations dad," Jack said in his more noticeable deeper voice, Aaron not quite used to it yet.

The ceremony started with David Rossi taking over the microphone and holding a poorly ripped piece of paper, ready to marry the couple.

" _ When first my friend here, told me he was getting married I already knew it was with Stella. I'm pretty sure everyone here knows their love story, how they met and how they ended up together. If you ask me, they were meant to be from the very beginning. Am I right Allison?"  _ The dark haired woman only gave a thumbs up, as a few laughs filled the room, " _ jokes aside, Stella, Aaron, I'm glad you finally found each other, and don't be stupid to let the other go ever again."  _ And after that introduction, David began with the official speech that allowed them to be officially married.

Searching inside his front pocket, Aaron took out the small golden ring, and with shaky hands he put it in her finger. Stella admired it for a second before doing the same, subtly getting his ring from inside her bra.

"It's very warm," he whispered as he watched her put it on his finger, making her quietly laugh.

"And now, I pronounce you husband and wife, you may now kiss. Frankie, Jack, cover your eyes." 

Loud cheering, claps and thunders made them smile in between the official married couple sweet kiss.

Shortly after dinner, prepared by the other Hotchner, Frankie's curiosity about how his sister met her now husband was eating his guts.

"I want to know story," he implored, his puppy eyes going from Stella to Aaron. 

The married couple looked at each other, unsure whether to tell him or not,  _ "Once you're eighteen and in college, you can hear the story,"  _ Rossi saved them. Telling Frankie about Aaron cheating on Allison to be with Stella, and how that ended up in a kidnapping that almost got Stella murdered by Aaron's stalker, wasn't a good example for a twelve year old, so they agreed with him knowing the real story once he's older. In the meantime they only told him: if it wasn't because of Allison and online dating, he would've never met his sister. Which made him even more confused. 

During the evening, a somewhat tipsy Penelope invited everyone to the improvised dance floor, dragging the newlyweds along. Although they didn't really dance, it was just a never ending hug.

"This still feels like a dream," Stella confessed in a low voice near his ear, as she rested her head on his shoulder. 

"I know," he sighed deep, holding her tighter, "We should go soon, there is a storm coming."

She furrowed one brow, pulling away from him, "Go? Where?"

"I may have rented a cabin, for the weekend. Frankie agreed to stay with your mom, so we are all good."

Despite of having a great time with their friends and family, they left their guests on their own. The desire to be alone was bigger. After calling a cab, in less than two hours of driving they were getting into the woods, they rushed under rain to get to the cabin hand in hand, splashing some wet dirt on their shoes.

An old lady was already waiting for them under the storm, holding her umbrella with one hand and handing Aaron the keys with the other, "Enjoy your stay," she almost shouted over the heavy rain. 

"Thank you ma'am," Aaron responded loudly. 

It was a big cabin, just for the two of them, with the classic fresh earthy odor from the woods and a slight scent of pine. 

"We're soaking wet," Stella laughed as soon as they got inside, like a dog shuffling to get the water off her body. 

Exploring the cabin before anything was a must for her, walking around and leaving her wet foot prints around, she truly felt in the clouds, it was all she ever wanted, finally being with the love her life for good. "So, are you gonna take this dress off me or what," she said turning around since she felt him following her. 

Slowly she walked up to him, wrapping her arms around his neck and looking into his eyes. 

"I will. Are you cold?"

"A little."

"Come on, let's light some fire." He took her hand and guided her to the living room area, where she stood next to him and watched him do his thing with the wood and fire. 

"Now, that dress is coming off." 

Stella became quiet, and nervous, like the very first time they were alone in a cabin a long time ago, listening to the same rain hitting the roof and loud thunders as her husband began to undo her zipper from behind, pulling it down slowly. Her entire body shivered as his fingertips tickled her spine. 

"I love you," she confessed quietly. Her cheeks were burning already. 

The dress hit the ground, Aaron tenderly kissing her neck as she started to unbutton his wet shirt. "I love you too."

He was ready to unhook her bra when the entire power went down, at the same time a lightning illuminated the place for less than a second. 

Both of them bursted out laughing, narrowing the space between them as their chests almost touched, but didn't only because she took her heels off seconds before. 

"Did you plan this?" Stella asked in a suspicious tone. 

"I swear I didn't." 

And at that very moment Aaron and Stella cherished how life gave them a second chance, and this time, they knew it was forever. 

"I can barely see you," she chuckled in a whisper as if anyone else could hear her, gently touching his face.

"I'm right here." 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is it. The end of 'Sudden Desire'. My little story. My first baby. A story that I still have no recall of how I came up with, two months ago, and that I already finished it. I feel so saddddddd 💔
> 
> It was a very simple final chapter because everything was solved, in my opinion. It was very difficult to write though, but I guess that's their happily ever after. I'm happy with it. 
> 
> If you made it until here, I truly hope that you enjoyed it reading as much as I enjoyed writing it. In the beginning it was just for me, to have fun and to explore this writer inside me I didn't know I had, which became a very toxic habit and a new way for me to avoid my real life responsibilities lol but then I decided to share it because I really liked it and wanted other people to read it as well.
> 
> Thanks to everyone who commented on the chapters and left a like I appreciate every single one!,,,
> 
> The epilogue I'll try to post it soon but I don't promise anything!! :( but there is one.
> 
> Thanks again  
> Much love,   
> Cat.
> 
> Fun fact: I wasn't planning on giving them a happily ever after, I was rooting for Steffan to be honest, that was before even I planned on making Stella a parent though. But while I listened Red by Taylor Swift and 'begin again' came up, the whole New York subway reunion chapter showed up in my head like a movie, so thank you Taylor for changing my mind.
> 
> ok bye


	28. Epilogue

From the day I became Aaron Hotchner's wife I felt like my life was finally complete. With him and Frankie, we became a family, and Jack who always visited us. Our two boys became thick as thieves which was the funniest thing in every new year's eve we spent together when both would perform a song, Frankie on the drums and Jack on the bass.

While Aaron maintained his job as department chief at the New York police, I became the manager of my agency _'Monument',_ which meant more responsibilities but also got more time to spend at home, since I could do my job anywhere as long as I had a laptop, Ipad and my pen. And Aaron was the most happy about it.

The time of Frankie graduating high school came and he immediately got into Juilliard to study music, and was the most emotional I've ever been. I was the proudest sister/mom and I still can't recall the moment he became as tall as Aaron. Although they weren't really related, sometimes I would see a similarity between the two. Frankie's hair was just as dark as Aaron's and sometimes they had the same facial expressions.

After Frank left home, it was just me and my husband. We got to take so many vacations, traveling anywhere we wanted and actually repeating our visit to England twice because we love it so much.

During one of our vacations, specifically in Cancun, we had a scare. A pregnancy scare. Which turned out to be just a hormonal thing, but I also took advantage of the situation, asking the doctor if I was infertile or not like I suspected. I wasn't. Neither was Aaron. Turns out that we weren't fertile together. So we never ended up having kids. We never really wanted to, we had our own babies separately and the company of the other was all we needed.

It was just me and him. And our beautiful rescue dog Coco who we adopted soon after that situation.

By the time Frankie was done with college, he wanted to explore the world with his band friends. Although it was hard for me, I let him spread his wings and become the smart and independent man I always knew he'd become.

That was when Aaron and I decided to move back to Virginia. I could still manage some of the agency from a distance and Aaron was still wanted at the BAU, so he became the section chief after the former passed away.

My mother was the happiest of our decision to move back, still working as a trauma surgeon being busy as always, but this time she was settled in a stable relationship with another surgeon. We still managed to spend time together and recover every moment we missed in the past.

And of course Hotch's team were more than happy too. Everyone missed him and even when he wasn't in the field anymore with them, they all saw each other regularly and visited us at our big home.

Our lives were great and I didn't even notice when Aaron's little wrinkles that I loved so much became more deep. The age gap between us became noticeable by the time he was in his sixties. That was when his leg injury got more painful to him and walking sometimes was misery. But he was the same man to me. We were growing older together and we kept making love as if it was our very first night.

Although that fear, of one day losing him, turned into a constant feeling inside me, that I couldn't fall asleep at night if he wasn't there laying next to me and my head on his chest, listening to his heart beat to make sure he was still there with me. I wasn't ready to lose him. I lost him once and it was one of the biggest heart pains I've felt.

But life was something we couldn't avoid, and it took him away from me in the most unexpected way. I got a call one day from an old retired David Rossi. His voice cracked and I immediately knew. They rushed him to the hospital but it was too late. A heart attack took his life and I couldn't say goodbye.

I still remember our last day together, like any other normal day of us kissing good morning, seeing him feed our dog and pet his head as he called him a good boy, because he was so proud of the tricks he taught him. Our last breakfast together we ate while Frankie facetimed us.

And our last kiss. That I wish I knew it was the last one I was gonna give him, so that it would've lasted forever. His lips against mine, my butterflies still there and his hands cupping my face.

"I love you," he said that morning before he left for work, like he always did looking right at my eyes.

"I know." I didn't say I love you back, because it was me who said it at night once he was back from work, then he was the one saying _'I know'_.

He was sixty four when he passed away, and I was only forty six when I went through my second and biggest heartbreak. Our happily ever after only lasted sixteen years. Like I said, I was not ready and my entire world fell apart.

I always told him, our love story was already written but I truly thought I had an entire life with him, because we had such a beautiful and unique thing. And just how life put us together, it tore us apart.

I was glad I was able to be there with him for the rest of his life. But I still needed him and missed him every day.

Soon after that Frankie came home with me because he couldn't bear not being with me through my grief, and he didn't come alone. He had found a girlfriend, Greta, a gorgeous italian woman that I already knew about but hadn't met her in person. And they had a little girl on the way.

Little Gemma glued my heart back together and gave me the strength to keep living the rest of my life without my greatest love.

She was also the one who gave me a reason to fight leukemia. It was in my genes because of my father, and I made Frankie promise that he was going to check himself regularly. And my Gemma would always be there during my chemos, coloring her books until I was done. She reminded me so much of Frankie when he was little, and that heart shaped beauty mark he had on his cheek, he passed it on to her. She was the light of my life and I was so grateful of her existence.

I was sixty four when my heart stopped beating after fighting leukemia for over five years, surrounded by my little family. 

That was life, and the same way Aaron and I found each other on earth, we found each other again in heaven. 

**...**

_"You look old," Aaron said with a big smile as he saw her walk towards him._

_"I do," Stella smiled, finally feeling his hands cupping her face again, "Why did you leave me without letting me know again?"_

_"I'm sorry, this time I didn't plan it."_

_"I love you."_

_"I know you do."_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Did I cry while writing this? very much. 
> 
> But I didn't want them to live forever. I needed their story to be over over. Otherwise I would've obsessed with making a second story about their life after marriage and ... No thanks. 
> 
> Sorry if it wasn't what you expected, but I loved it. 


	29. No regrets

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Remember Hotch and Stella's first time in the kitchen, and how they did the nasty twice after that? here are the other two times, enjoy!!

“Stella, you make me crazy,” Hotch groaned against the crook of my neck.

He was so deep inside me. Physically and emotionally. This was all I ever wanted. Make love to him.

I was aware that this, us, was so fucking wrong. Aaron was my mom’s boyfriend and still, we ended up here. But it felt so good. 

It was like he wanted to be like this forever, unable to pull out or pull away from me, holding me so tight. I wanted to think he was feeling the same things as me right now. “Hotch,” I finally spoke, kissing the top of his head. His breathings were slowly regulating, but his grip on my body was just as intense. 

His eyes met mine and, I lost it, I needed to kiss him again, for an eternity. So I did, my tongue tangled with his, my arms loosely wrapped around his neck, both of us beginning to breath heavily again. 

This man, was the man of my dreams. I just can’t believe this is the way we had to start. 

The lack of air was taking over us once again and Aaron finally pulled out, breaking our kiss too, and I felt how he dripped off my body. Fuck. We were so desperate we didn’t even think about protection. 

But I wasn’t worried about anything other than sharing the same dick with my own mother. To be honest, it disgusted me for a hot second. Until he spoke, as if he heard my thoughts. 

“You don’t have to worry.” He was already adjusting his clothes back on, and I was still with my boobs and ass exposed. 

I didn’t want this to be over, and he didn't either. I could see it in the way he was just staring at my body as he zipped his pants loudly. But still I got down the counter, pulled my dress down and straps back on and barely walked to pick up my panties, my evidently soaked panties. 

I bent over and he was already behind me, hugging me, “God, Stella, seriously, what the hell did you do to me.” I swear I melted to the sound of his voice against the back of my head, so deep and soothing. Like honey.

Honestly, I didn't have the answer to that. It was probably the blowjob I gave him. But I wanted to think it was more than that, that he wanted me because of me and not just my body. 

His soft big hand ran across my skin and started to lift my dress once again, my legs wanting to give up, “Hotch, I- This is wrong,” I tilted my head back to his shoulder. 

“I know, so wrong.” His warm cheek brushed against mine and I exhaled quietly. His perfume, I wish I could sink on it. 

I turned around to face him. God he was more beautiful than ever. I just had to eat his face again. 

For the second time that night he lifted me by my thighs and walked with me to the dark living room while we kissed, sloppy and desperate. I was on top of him once again, and this time he lifted my dress entirely over my head with my help. I was all naked and he was fully dressed. 

“This is not fair,” I complained against his mouth. Our kiss then turned more delicate, my lips barely touching his but still feeling its effect entenly inside my stomach. 

“You are beautiful, so pretty.” 

Like a magnet his mouth captured my right nipple, tugging my piercing between his teeth. Damn I already knew he was obsessed with them. 

I gasped so loud, “I want you naked too.” Just by imagining him completely naked I started to roll my hips. I wanted him so badly again. 

His erection was already there under his pants, ready for me to sit on. I quickly unbuttoned them and took his length out. Fuck, I still don’t know how I handled it the first time, I guess it was the rush of the moment, but right now it feel bigger around my hand.

As he kept sucking on my breast I began to pump up and down gently, my thumb occasionally rubbing his dripping tip. He was so sensitive there, lifting his hips from the couch reacting to my tender touch. 

I started to tease myself with it, rubbing it between my wet folds and his delicious moans and grunts appeared. 

Then once again, I was sitting on it and he was inside me. Raw. Big. Filling me completely and more. 

Slowly rolled my hips with his help, his big hands following the pace of my body. “You feel incredible.” 

I knew that. I was so wet for him. Soaking his length. I swear I’ve never wanted anyone this bad. Part of me thought it was only because it was an impossible thing. It was exciting. Allison could literally walk in on us and come inside the front door catching us like this. Me jumping on top of him, up and down as we both moaned shamelessly, on her couch, her house, her living room. 

God. So fucking wrong. Neither of us was thinking straight. Neither of us stopped to think about what we were doing. 

Yet somehow, I felt, this was meant to happen, just like this. So I let go. I needed to enjoy this moment while it lasted. While I lasted. My vision was getting blurry with starts already, his mouth capturing each of my soft moans as I tightened around him. 

That made him go crazy. Lifting his hips harsh and deep and so fucking fast that I felt like I was going to die. I let him be, hugging me tight by my waist as he took control over the situation. 

We weren’t as passionate as the first time. This time were so fucking desperate for each other. I loved it. Feeling him wanting me this much, emptying himself inside me so stupidly again. 

“God damn, Stella, I can’t-” He barely spoke out of breath, his hot breath against my chest. I was dead. I swear he killed me this time. I couldn't handle it anymore. “What the hell are we doing.”

“I don’t know, I don’t know,” I breathed out harshly, holding the back of his head. 

The only thing I knew was that I had to keep kissing him. I wanted this to be a never ending night. Just us. 

How do I keep this going. I don’t ever want him away from me. Ever. 

Like he heard me, again, he started to place soft kisses all over me, everywhere he could reach while I was still on top of him with him inside me. 

My breasts, my chest, collarbones, shoulders, neck, jaw, cheeks, then finally my lips. So soft. So tender. Then his nose against my cheeks. 

Now I was dead. I was in love. 

_I kept wondering, what she had done to me. I’m not like this. I’m not a cheater. I promised myself I would never be like my father. But here I was, burying myself in this beautiful woman. I couldn't get enough from her._

_My mind has never been clearer. This was wrong on so many levels but yet I still wanted Stella. Only Stella. No one else._

_“I- I need to get dressed,” she murmured._

_“No.” I wanted her naked inked body on top of me for an eternity. She was stunning. And she fitted me perfectly._

_Still, I reached for her dress and helped her put it back on just like she helped me get it off._

_I looked at her flushed face. Those rosy cheeks and shiny big eyes were the death of me I swear. How did I control myself before. I can’t believe her. Her beauty._

_“Thank you.”_

_Then she left me there. I was still trying to catch my breath while I heard her go upstairs. I didn’t want her to regret this. I certainly didn't. As wrong and awful the situation was._

_For the second time I adjusted my pants. I already missed her. I rubbed my sweaty face with both hands and looked at the kitchen. It felt like we did it there a long time ago, the memories of her first moans ringing in my head._

_I was not expecting this and didn’t know how much I needed it._

_My hands were sweaty, my entire body was burning, like never before. I stood up, decided to get rid of any kind of evidence. The first one was her panties, right where I was sitting. I picked them up and like a fucking creepy psychopath, I brought them to my nose and smelled them. Fuck. I wanted her even more now._

_These panties were the perfect excuse to go to her room and give them back, as much as I wanted to keep them, just in case this was a one time thing only. I didn't want it to be only a one time thing though. It couldn't be. It was too perfect._

_Stella was perfect._

_I went upstairs, her door was open, her bedside lamp was one and she was lying on her bed with her forearm covering her eyes, still with her dress on. God I hope she didn’t regret it._

_“Stella,” I murmured from the door. She quickly sat back up and looked at me, biting her bottom lip._

_Here we go again._

_I closed the door behind me and approached her, Stella standing on her knees as I stood by the edge of the bed. I wrapped my hand around her neck and leaned down to kiss her delicious lips._

_Her hands swiftly began to unbutton my shirt and I let her. Then her lips made their way to my neck down my chest and stomach, sucking on my skin lightly._

_“Let me suck your dick, please please.” So polite._

_With a pleasing hum I said yes and I watched her desperately unzip my pants. As she took my dick out I pulled her hair back with both hands. Now she was sitting by the edge and began to kiss my tip. Damn._

_So gently she started to stroke my cock as her soft mouth focused on the tip, swirling her tongue and humming so needy against it. My whole body vibrated with her voice._

_“Shit, Stella,” I was already about to explode. I couldn’t let her._

As much as I wanted to keep pleasing him with my mouth, I needed him inside me again. So I stood up and took my dress off. This dress has always been my favorite, but now, I was about to keep it like a treasure. Probably wouldn't wear it again unless it was for him. It was his dress now. 

Softly but somehow still harsh he pushed me against the bed and I while I rested on my elbows watched him get completely naked. Fuck yes. 

“Holy shit, Hotch, you’re so hot.” I made him smile.

He crawled up to me and began to kiss me fiercely, not wanting to rest his entire body on me. I wouldn't mind if he crashed me anyways. He was so big compared to me. He could kill me now and I wouldn’t care. I would die happy. Satisfied. 

I felt him smirk between our kiss before he went down on me, doing the same thing as I did, leaving a trail of wet kisses down my stomach to my pelvis. I was not expecting him to do that but god it felt amazing, his tongue felt incredible. His hot breath teased me. 

My hands gripped his soft hair, his head digging between my legs even more. I was in heaven. 

Neither of us cared anymore. I didn’t. I already thought about this whole situation. My mind was crystal clear about how I truly wanted this. I didn’t regret it. How could I, this was literally a dream come true. I didn’t care about the possible consequences, not when his tongue was pleasing me just right, already feeling those goddamn butterflies traveling to my clit. 

“Aaron,” I moaned, closing my eyes as I came in his mouth, my body slightly shaking, my heavy breathings filling the room. 

Then he was back again on top of me, kissing me with open mouth so I could taste myself. 

He groaned as he entered me slowly, so careful not to rest his body fully on me. But I wanted him close, I pulled him close, hugging him by wrapping my arms under his. 

With his forehead against mine he began to move his hips back and forth, I had to follow him moving my hips to his rhythm too. 

“How are we going to stop,” I asked between a small giggle, making his smile again. God, I really was already in love. How. 

“I don’t know,” he answered, moving a bit faster. I watched him close his eyes and I kissed the tip of his nose, I wanted him looking at me. 

“Hotch.”

“Stella.”

I laughed, “Stop, I’m being serious.” 

“You. Stop. Talking.” He captured my mouth with his, biting my bottom lip softly. I let out a moan. 

“Okay.” 

His thrust became harsh, going in deep and hitting my spot just right. I swear it was like our bodies were meant to be. I wanted them to be. This was just too perfect. 

Sliding both of his palm through my arms until they were above my head, he interlocked our fingers strongly. Like I said, too perfect. I’m melting. I’m dying in his arms. God. 

The sensual moans dripping past his lips onto mine gave me the biggest butterflies, at any moment they would escape from within me and fill this entire room, the room that has never witnessed this, me making love. I never bought any guy here. Aaron was the first one in so many things in my life right now. Like the first one who had made me come so easily, on each of our encounters. Fucking amazing. 

“You’re the only one I want,” I confessed in a whisper. 

Aaron moved his hips to push his length so deep inside me, capturing my long moans with his mouth, brushing his tongue against mine. 

“Damn Stella I’m-” He came. Inside me. And I loved it. So much that the only sound of his deep grunts inside my mouth made me reach my orgasm too. That sensation of him emptying himself and digging his hips harshly until he couldn't move anymore made all of my senses explode. This is definitely heaven. 

Aaron Hotchner was my heaven. 

We stayed like this for a while, his head resting on my chest, my fingers running through his hair and our breathings finally calm and almost in sync. 

“I- I have to go,” he blurted out, quickly lifting his warm body from me. His smile was gone now. No. He can’t do this to me. 

“Hotch,” I put on my pajama shirt from under my pillow and watched him get dressed with a frown on his face. Was he regretting this already? I don’t want to feel used. 

“We’ll talk about this, not now. But, I- I don’t regret this,” he heard my thoughts once again, “This was-”

“I know,” I interrupted. Good or bad, I didn’t want to hear what was gonna come out of his mouth, I wasn’t ready to hear what this meant to him yet. 

“I have to go.” 

_I closed her door behind me and just to find an excuse to leave right now, any excuse, I checked my phone while I went to the kitchen. No message. There was no case._

_I got some wipes from under the sink and wiped every single surface, even the ones we didn’t touch, getting rid of any evidence._

_Me and Allison were over. How the hell do I explain her though. I can’t see her yet, confront her._

_Once I was done cleaning, texted her, saying that I couldn't wait for her and that I was called into a case._

_And like a coward I left the house. And Stella in it all alone. I wish I could just kidnap her and take her with me forever. What am I even saying._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hiiiii, I decided to come up with some 'one shots' for my story Sudden Desire. I've missed writing about Stella and Hotch so I'm most likely keep writing some cute (or sad) moments. I know I gave them a full ending on the epilogue but I have sixteen years in between to come up with some new chapters.


	30. Wedding night

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Soo, this is basically the continuation from chapter XXVII (twenty seven) and is very fluffy. Enjoy!

"I can barely see you," I giggled, cupping his face with both hands.

"I'm right here."

My eyes, adjusting in the dark, tried to find his face, which was hardly visible, if it wasn't because of the soft light the fireplace gave.

His nose found my left cheek and his closeness was enough to activate those goddamn butterflies that haven't left me alone this entire day.

The more he brushed his nose against my cheeks, the more I melted, knowing well he was breathing in my perfume.

This is all I ever wanted to do. Be close to him. Be his wife. His friend. His life partner.

Today I married the love of my life and it still felt like a fever dream. There were so many times he sowed up in my sleep, and I always woke up alone, empty on the inside, like a piece of me was missing. Because it was. And right now, I felt complete, my entire body was glowing from the inside out of pure love.

I don't know how I'm handling this. His touch, his attention, his kisses.

"What are you thinking about?" Hotch asked as his lips moved to kiss under my ear, shivers taking over me.

I gasped, closing my eyes, feeling loved, wanted. "You."

A silent chuckle tickled my neck, his lips tracing soft wet kisses down to my chest. "Doing what."

"Everything. Anything."

The sound of his mouth pecking every inch of my skin accompanied with the slightest rumbling of thunder in the distance, instantly brought back the memories of our first kiss. And I knew he was thinking the same thing.

"Can't wait to make love to you for the rest of my life," he whispered as his mouth was right in front of mine.

"I love you, so much Hotch," I hugged him tight, feeling my eyes sting from the unexpected tears.

"I know you do." Aaron swiftly lifted me by my thighs and walked with me to the couch, sitting with me on his lap. My tears were already soaking his neck.

"You have no idea how much I regretted not saying it enough, when I still had you." My voice cracked between words, which only made him hug me tighter pressing his lips onto my neck.

"I've always known you loved me, there was no need for you to say it, your eyes say it all. And you've always had me, even when I wasn't there physically, you were always on my mind." Lifting my head from his shoulder, Aaron cupped my face. "Now stop crying and kiss me."

"I'm not crying." My lips fiercely crashed with his, our breathings soon were being as loud as the rain on above our heads. "I wanna stay here forever."

Aaron chuckled, moving his lips from my mouth to my neck down to my chest. "I only rented the place for two nights."

My arms loosely wrapped around his neck, closing my eyes and savoring the touch of his big warm hands running up and down my back, "I meant between your arms."

"We can do that," he assured as I began to unbutton his shirt from the top. His presence giving me comfort, his touch brought me peace as much as nervousness. My fingers were shaking until the very last button and with his help his shirt was on the floor.

As his tongue brushed the skin around my nipples, I started to roll my hips against him. "You have too much clothes Aaron."

"God, you're so impatient," he laughed heavily against my chest, "I'm taking my time here." A hum left my body as his tongue swirled around my piercings until his entire mouth captured my breast.

He's always known exactly how to please me, and every time I let him take his time, but I was craving him badly. He was my husband now, I needed my husband.

"I want you now," I ordered, pulling back from him to unbuckle his belt.

In one motion I was on my knees between his legs. Now that was something he was never going to contradict.

"I haven't had you in five years, now I'm gonna have you forever. I want you, all the time, every minute," I murmured, pulling his pants down. The grin on his face was delightful as I undressed him fully. "I am so in love with you."

"I can get used to you saying that everyday."

And I can get used to hearing his groans full of love and desire everyday too. After I gave him a soft kiss on his erection, I took him completely inside my mouth without any warning, making Aaron grunt loudly. I loved making him feel good, pleasing him and feeling his hands pull my hair back as I took more of him.

"Oh, honey," Aaron groaned tilting his head back on the couch, following my head bobs with his hands, "I'm so in love with you too."

I smiled at the needy tone of his voice. "Sorry, I'll have to continue this later."

Back on my feet I adjusted on top of him again, my legs on each side of his hips. I truly needed him buried inside me.

The warmth of the fire behind me was already reaching us, feeling my body melting even more. Now I could see his face crystal clear. He was expectant, looking up at me and placing his hands on my hips, waiting for me to take him in.

So I did, with my gentle fingers guiding his length and beginning to sit down on it. As soon as his tip was inside, I watched him close his eyes with a smile, tilting his head back in complete pleasure.

The more I took him in, the more I gasped, supporting my hands on his shoulders until he was finally fully inside me.

I swear he fitted me perfectly yet it still hurt wonderfully. I had to take my time before I began to move my hips, and he waited patiently, running his warm big hands up and down my body from my back down my thighs as one single path.

"Are you alright?" he asked, cupping my face.

"I'm perfect, you are just too much right now, I feel... overwhelmed."

My voice faded the more I talked, and his eyes on me weren't making things easier for me. He still made me so freaking nervous. And of course he caught all of my feelings, bringing my face closer to his and capturing my mouth.

I could tell he was getting impatient, and as I stayed still but our kiss deepened, he adjusted our bodies down on the couch, laying on our sides while facing each other. I ended up being a bit higher than him, his face buried on my neck and his hand carefully holding me by the small of my back so that I wouldn't fall off the couch.

Then he took charge, beginning to move his hips back and forth, slow and deep. God he felt fucking amazing.

A loud long whine from me echoed inside his mouth, and as I kept my eyes closed, I felt his smile against my skin. He loved hearing my pleasure sounds probably as much as I enjoyed his.

I began to follow his gentle pace with my hips, my body gradually getting used to the feeling of him digging himself deep within me.

This position was way too comfortable, we were barely doing any work and I still felt it all over me, involuntary simultaneous moans filling the small space between our bodies.

"Now you are being too much," he silently laughed. I was barely doing anything, "Your whines, Stella, your voice-"

"Hang in there my dude," I interrupted with a soft voice. I felt he was about to come the more he increased the speed between us, but I wasn't going to let him.

I pulled him out of me and a deep frustrated grunt lingered on his throat between tight lips. "Now who's being impatient."

"Don't mock me, I haven't had you this close in so long." His hand reached between us, smoothly getting between my legs, massaging my sensitive nerves perfectly. I had to do the same for him, grabbing his erection between my hand and gently teasing his tip with my thumb. He was still so sensitive and responsive to my tender touch.

His tongue traced a long line across my jaw desperately as he quickened the speed of his fingers against me, making my breaths increase sharply.

It was my turn to be in charge again. Although I was small compared to him, I still managed to flip us over, him on his back while I was on top.

Then once I was fully adjusted, I firmly supported my hands on his sweaty chest and began to roll my hips. Now this felt like heaven.

I quickly caught up my rhythm, finding the perfect position that tickled my spot just right. So I stayed there, moving up and down occasionally between hips circles.

Soon my body was getting tired. I was out of practice so I had to come down and lean my body onto his, while still moving at a slower pace.

This was perfect and I was already close to releasing myself around him, Aaron quickly holding me tight still as he began to push his hips hard under me. I let myself be controlled by him, both of us unable to hold back the sounds that came out of our mouths.

My body trembled in pleasure. I couldn't be any closer to him but somehow this was not enough, my lips desperately meeting his for the hundredth time. He kept moving in and out, grunting even louder just for me.

"God, how can I love you this much."

I didn't realize I was keeping my eyes shut, and I'm glad I was because as soon as I opened them, his eyes were already locked into mine.

"I love you too."

I meant it when I said I wanted to stay here forever. It's just that this felt too good to be true.

These past two weeks, since I found Aaron again, have felt surreal. I can't bring myself to truly believe this is true. Call me melodramatic, but being in this man's arms is the only thing I've been wanting to experience at least once more in my life. And the fact that he is my fucking husband. I swear I'm his biggest fan.

The feeling of his chest barely moving because of his calm breathings was slowly making me sleepy, but I couldn't fall asleep. I didn't want this night to end.

"Why did you kiss me?" I asked a bit loud, in case he was already on his first dream. I wanted to be selfish and keep him awake too.

"Mmh?"

I rested my chin on his chest, looking up at him. "When we were stuck in the lake cabin, that night, you kissed me first."

With his eyes still closed he smiled. "I don't know, I just had to, wanted to. You looked so pretty."

"But you apologized." I remembered that day as if it was yesterday.

He scoffed, his fingertips beginning to rub my spine. "I just thought you were going to reject me."

"What? You are a profiler, wasn't I obvious back then?"

"You have no idea how blinded I was. I didn't want to admit the things you made me feel."

I don't know why I always thought that it was after that night that he started to like me back. "You already liked me before that then?"

"From the very first day. But it felt wrong, you made me feel dirty."

"Dirty? No way, I was the dirty one."

"How's that?" He laughed, finally opening his eyes to look at me.

"That same day, I literally masturbated thinking about you." That had been my secret for the longest time, and for some reason it felt right to finally confess it.

And like I suspected, he liked what he heard, giving me a funny flirty look. "Oh yeah?"

"Not on purpose, but dude, I was so crazy for you, you were all I thought about, I even had sex dreams, so vividly." I adjusted fully on top of him again, he was already getting excited.

"And what did I do in your dreams?" As if that was a rhetorical question he kissed me deeply, breathing in the small chuckle I got out.

"Nothing you haven't done already."


End file.
